Wish
by Pepper Gem
Summary: Trapped by her mind, her duties and monotonous routine, an exhausted girl desires to break the cycle of nothingness - to make a wish. In the process, she winds up with much more than she bargained for...
1. Make a Wish

Author's Note (July 13, 2012): Trust me, it gets better as it goes. I promised myself I wouldn't go back and edit earlier chapters until I finished the whole story. XD This fic has been an ongoing process for about two or three years now, because I'm a dork and focus on school too much.

Through this story, I'm challenging myself to learn the art of finishing one - I'm not trying to blow anyone away with spectacular content. With that in mind, please review and help me reach my goal. :)

I should probably say ahead of time (derp) that there is a significant spoiler warning for this story. As it progresses, the spoilers increase - so I recommend you finish Furuba and DNAngel, and read their _manga_, too, before continuing. :)

* * *

CHAPTER 1

_A devil disguised in an angel's cloak…_

_An angel from the depths of darkness…_

Slowly opening my eyes, I found myself in need of squinting. Sunlight was pouring into my bedroom and I could barely see. Usually the sun was past that point in the sky when I woke up. After sitting up in bed and pushing my tangled hair aside, I gained sight and tried to decipher the positions of the hands on my clock through the glare. Did it really read 7:30? What happened, I wondered? I never got up this early, but I felt wide awake, and…what would I do with all this extra time?

It was summer vacation, and the weather couldn't have been any more humid: it was one of those days where if you dared to step out into the sun, you'd shrivel up within minutes. The plans I thought up for the rest of the day involved the littlest of movement indoors, perhaps a quiet hobby such as reading, because the heat outside was hardly bearable for any sort of activity. There wasn't anyone in my neighborhood willing to spend time with me, anyway. The girl around my age who lived nearby wasn't really the best of neighbors I could've asked for; barely any other houses edged the dense forest that surrounded my own; and, just a day ago, my mother left on a trip with my brother to scout out colleges for him to apply to, so I was sure to be on my own for at least the next week. Mom trusted me to be able to fare well, because that was kind of the way I liked to be: I was a perfectionist with housekeeping, I knew how to cook, and I didn't mind the intense quiet. Or at least I thought I didn't.

After eating breakfast, I settled in my sunny room, deciding to draw for a while before moving on to some house-cleaning. I looked out of my window as I thought of what to sketch, which proved to be a slow process. The simple landscaping did nothing to help my envisioning the creative work I so desired. A handful of indigo-colored irises were planted below my window, the very tops of their petals seen swaying above the very bottom edge of its frame; a few decorative stones were laid out here and there, and the grass was smooth and neat before it reached the trees. I admired the perfection and neatness, but that neatness could sometimes be depressingly much. The forest had a forgotten, lonely feel about it - the trees looked like identical melancholy soldiers that stood rigid in wait for orders that wouldn't come even a century later.

I didn't like to look into the depths of that forest, let alone physically venture into it, because it was too familiar, too similar to myself. I stood in wait like they did, my acting skills utilized to keep up normal public appearances, for the excitement of life and love that was supposedly everybody's natural right. When I looked at those ancient, _natural_ trees, looking as sad as they did - in that perfectly _natural_, God-planted forest - how was I supposed to believe that I would find it? I knew it childish to say I "wanted" those things, and I knew that I would just have to contentedly keep on keeping on until, by some chance, it came. I was fine with that, because I had enough to stay occupied during the wait – but who said occupation was interesting? Really, if I could describe my life in one long word, it would be _booorrrriiiing._

Sigh...What to think of...What to look at...What to draw?

Lacking ideas, I scanned my room for anything to help me (in the areas that the not-so-great outdoors could not), and found a particular item hanging in isolation in a corner of my room. With a disgusted sigh, I slipped it over my head: my superstitious inspiration-necklace, which my grandfather had given to me several years earlier, consisting of a leather cord strung with large wooden beads, Southwestern Indian markings, and little wooden rings that jingled in their own kind of music. He said it had the power to "draw forth inspiration and potential of the ancient natives from deep within you for the creation of legendary masterpieces" or something ridiculous, and I knew he was just making it up, because it never worked like that. _Nothing_ worked liked that. I wore the "inspiration" necklace for a few drawings in the past, and they turned out well, but they weren't anything I couldn't do without it. Only for the sake of my grandfather, I now wore that necklace anyway. Maybe if the drawing turned out, I could give him a call and tell him how the necklace..."worked". I could add that to my mental list of things to do, and I would be prepared to cross it off the moment I knew the drawing would be beyond repair.

At long last, I sat down on my bed with a sharpened pencil, a large eraser and my sketch pad, with the oversized beads dangling about my neck and distracting me with noise each time they swayed. My poor sketchbook didn't have any recent drawings in it, so I waited with my eyes shut in a comical meditation pose (if I was going to wear that necklace in the first place, why not live up the charade?) for some silly 'legendary masterpiece' sort of inspiration to come forth and show itself. Without really thinking about what I was doing, I set pencil to paper and drew the beginning lines of the much-loved shape I finally saw in my mind.

I became conscious of my work on the paper and found my pencil sketching a 'legendary' picture indeed: a fictional character from a manga I liked. Whenever I had nothing to think of, he was the one I thought about. Whenever I had no one to listen to, whenever I felt down, whenever I wanted to write, whenever I wanted to draw…he was my foolproof backup.

Dark was his name. Dark, mysterious, exciting, intriguing...Everything I wasn't. I couldn't get over the fact that this character of whose personality I knew more about than my own wasn't a real person. It proved something all too pitiful about me.

I wanted so desperately to know someone like him, someone so bold and interesting! His ways were far from stereotypical or predictable, far from boring, far from me. A tall, handsome fellow, donning a head of daring, spiky, dark-purple hair, he held the title of immortal 'phantom thief' – a _Kaitou_, if you will – and he flew the night skies on huge black wings. Although the fact that he was a thief made me question my recent interest in the character, he didn't actually steal just _anything_. He was self-disciplined. Noble, even. That was a big plus.

I was completely absorbed in the drawing while thinking about these things, astonished that it was going so well. Often, my drawings never turned out the way I wanted them to and I'd simply give up. Or, I'd force myself to be content with something that didn't meet my expectations. Such good drawings weren't characteristic of my skill - what was going on? With every stroke of the pencil, even those careless, unintended ones, he gained a stroke of my highest ideal. I wanted to stop before I fell too far into amazement, but I couldn't. It was Dark. He was unfolding on that page, and I was the one unfolding him. Completing him. It was what I _wanted_ for once.

After I finished some brief shading, there he was, standing in that way he always did, in the way I envisioned him in my mind. The resemblance to the official artwork was so eerie – just how did I accomplish this? How did this work come from my own mind and hand? Only one possibility came to my mind: the necklace...worked. I didn't have to cross off that mental reminder after all.

I backed my perspective up a little and simply admired the drawing as a whole, not as my own accomplishment. Dark...I honestly and foolishly wanted then and there for a "Dark" to come along in my life. I needed someone like him, and I knew it – I needed someone to save me from drowning in monotony! That carefree confidence, that determination... The only thing we had in common was the love of art.

I then studied the picture in disbelief, thinking of what could be tweaked for a few minutes, _trying_ to find flaws, as was my habit with most of my drawings. I flipped through the rest of the sketches in the book while I thought, and found the three other drawings that were drawn when I wore that special necklace. And…well, all three pictures were of Dark. Each grew progressively accurate, but appeared to me as the obvious work of an amateur. This fourth drawing, however, achieved the status of that which could only be drawn by Yukiru Sugisaki herself.

_If I ever want to draw another picture of him, that necklace is officially a no-brainer_, I thought.

Because I could find nothing to want to change in the picture, I closed the sketchbook and put it away, thinking that if I hid it for a while and came back, I would be able to find at least something wrong with it. There was no way that a completely ridiculous superstition could work, but there was no way I could've drawn that myself! Absolutely no way!

I took the necklace off and hung it back in the dusty corner from whence it came, in the hopes that I would forget the impossible incident.

* * *

I grew to be bored in a content sort of way as I adjusted to being all alone in the house. It would take some time before I'd stop expecting my mom to call me to do chores, or my brother to run upstairs and tell me about his recent achievements on the internet.

The house was small, but with me being the only one there, the house seemed so much larger. I walked into the living room as I searched around for an activity, and laid eyes on my upright piano. I knew how to play it, so I seated myself in front of it for the sake of the summer practice I so neglected.

Looking through my large collection of sheet music, I had located a beautiful piece of music from the anime remake of the manga Dark belonged to. My fingers moved along without me consciously paying attention, because my mind was elsewhere.

_Get over Dark already. You're so pathetic! He's fake, a figment of someone's imagination… Stop wanting things you can't and won't get. He's just not real, you fool!_

I lost count of how many times I had to tell myself that, but this time - so suddenly - I saw myself from a different angle. Those words were transforming me into the exact type of person I didn't want to be: a total bore. I didn't believe in or hope for anything because of those words. Putting on that necklace earlier was equally as foolish in my eyes, but at least the strange belief got me somewhere. I inexplicably drew the best drawing of my lifetime. Even if that superstition itself didn't work, a simple belief was enough. That little fact instilled a strange kind of hope in me and caused me to rethink those classic lines that I regularly told myself. Maybe a dream like Dark was okay to have? Didn't that one quote go, "Dreams aren't dreams if they can actually come true"?

My thoughts then floored the brakes and did a U-turn - maybe it wasn't alright, because the only thing awaiting the end of a good dream was a harsh reality. Dreamers wait for reality to end, for a dream to replace it, based only on the same hope I'd felt a moment ago. All of that hope, only to be crushed by the weight of waiting for something that simply wouldn't happen. Maybe if I didn't dream like that, I wouldn't be crushed.

_No_, I said to my thoughts in disagreement with myself. The weight of a predictable, tedious lifestyle had already crushed me. Something needed to change.

I noticed by then that the music had stopped. I tried to clear my mind and restart the song, but I couldn't do it. I wasn't focused. All of that disagreeing with myself was mind-consuming.

So, I walked around the house again, looking for something else to do – something to take my mind off of my own character flaws – and came across the computer in the basement. I never really spent much time on it, but I pressed the power button anyway. First I checked my email. Nothing. Then I went to see which of my "friends" were logged in to the instant messaging service I used, but it turned out that nobody was. There was no one to talk to. With my head leaning on my hand, I let myself dream up the idea of a real-life Dark randomly knocking on my door and making my day.

Right before I logged off to go find something else to do, a message popped up on the screen from someone I didn't know, with the screen name "Lena_girl". I wondered if I shouldn't respond to the stranger, but I was reminded of my inner struggle and just responded anyway. It might be interesting.

"OMG HELLO!" she typed.

"Hey, uhh, do I know you?" I typed back, pleased with my decision.

"Well, no, but I gotta tell you something!"

I waited for her to say whatever it was. The pencil icon in the corner of the IM screen didn't move for a few minutes, indicating that she wasn't typing anything. I wanted her to just spit it out, and I thought she would have, as hyper as she seemed.

"Hello?" I prodded.

"Oh, right! Be prepared and don't freak out too much, Alyssa, okay?"

She logged off immediately.

_How did she know my name?_

That night I couldn't sleep. All day long I had been wondering what she meant by being prepared. Did she actually know about something that was going to happen? Was she a stalker? Or was she someone I knew who was planning to surprise me, but lied about not knowing me? Yes, that sounded more likely. How else could she have known my name? I was definitely over-thinking this, but I couldn't turn my brain off. Such was my curse.

I lay in bed, staring at my ceiling, anxiously pondering possibilities. After a little while, I turned my attention to the window, hoping the hazy, dream-like moon and swaying flowers would help me relax.

That was when a tiny twinkling star caught my eye. Realizing it was the first star I saw that night, a weary thought came to my mind: The theme of the day was letting my imagination run wild, right?

I walked over to the sketch book I previously put away, and took out the drawing of Dark. Once again, I found no flaw. I sat the book on my lap and looked at him fondly for a minute before I glanced back out the window again.

"Star light, star bright..." I sighed and shook my head, but continued. "First star I see tonight, wish I may, wish I might, have the wish…I wish tonight…"

Feeling rather pathetic, I closed my eyes and made the wish that Dark would become a real person. This was the only wish I'd ever felt even infinitesimally confident in. After witnessing a stupid superstition bringing him to life on paper, anything was possible.

_Oh, who am I kiddi- believe it just for the heck of it…don't turn into a stern, boring old fart some day…have some fun! You wanted something interesting, right?_

Of course, I had to wish just one more thing: that the meaning of what that Lena person said would become clear. I forgot if the limit on stars was one wish or not, but even if I couldn't have the second one, the first one was entirely good enough for me!

_What was that?_ I thought, after opening my eyes. A dark shadow ran past my window. Was it...could it be…?

No, it was too small to be a person. Actually, the shadow resembled a small animal.

I got up to look outside. Indeed, it was a cat. I couldn't make out precisely what color it was, because it was so black outside save the small amount of moonlight and a few stars, but it might've been a tan color. As my eyes adjusted to the dim light, its coat revealed a rustier hue. The cat darted around to look at me as it heard my window squeak open, and then it scampered around the corner of the house and out of sight. Maybe it belonged to the owners of the house on the hill that was quite a ways out. They were cat-lovers.

I heard an unusual gust of air and a loud shuffling sound, as if something was being dragged across the grass. The noise broke through the still night and scared a few birds into the air, one of which was an especially eye-catching silver color. I didn't really care to notice, because I was finally tired. I felt like I finally resolved the Dark issue with myself.

The humid summer night made the window stick. After I attempted to close it as far as I could, I went back to bed and dreamed, without any doubts or entangled thoughts, of an encounter with a particular phantom thief.

Little did I know that something was watching me.


	2. Inaccuracy

CHAPTER 2

_There it stood, all alone, high on the hill beyond the still void: the soldiers' savior standing in their shadows, alerting them, stirring them, making them restless. Monstrous wings adorned the distance, what color they were, I could not tell; the sky was stripped of its stars, the moon of her light, by the being that now held it in its hands. It beckoned me and called my name with so much yearning it hurt. I tried futilely to reach it, but the anxious, frenzied soldiers, several times my height, held me back in an effort to block my view of the greater light arising. It grew too high for them to hide. The soldiers unwillingly went back to their places and stood motionless, but not me - I had to help the creature in pain. Just as I got around the monstrous men, I found that hill to be empty, and that light to be painfully blinding; my heart sped up in panic..._

"Whoa," I said out loud and sat straight up. Due to my speed in waking, my surroundings spun for a few seconds with a blue-ish hue that faded away not long afterwards. The sudden return to reality erased any potential of dream-recall I may have had. What was it that made me so nervous and panicked? As I propped myself on my arms to catch my breath, I ran through my memories of the day before, and thought them to be the dreams responsible for scaring me awake.

_Wait, it wasn't a dream. All that weird stuff really happened?_

I took a moment to reflect on the events of the previous day. Instinctively, I had to ask myself if yesterday was real. Did I actually draw something that I could deem perfect? Did that girl actually know my name? Did I _actually_ wish to a star like an idiot? _Why did I do that? _One thing could prove it all. I scurried over to the sketchbook on my white bookshelf, bright and aglow with the orange-colored rays that streamed in through the spotless window.

The drawing - Dark - was still there.

Before I could admire the image, I noticed the shade of the sunlight in my room and leaned to the side to view my clock. It was even earlier than the previous morning, but I didn't feel tired_._ Whatever force governed my waking, why did it have to torture me and demand that I fill more daylight hours with searching for things to do? I liked waking up late to avoid exactly that! I sighed in disappointment. Yesterday, house-cleaning dominated my hours, but unless I wanted to earn a reputation as an obsessive-compulsive clean-freak, I vowed to save it for a weekly or as-needed activity, so what would I do today?

Out of nowhere, a cool breeze blew some pages of my sketchbook to the side.

Turning to face the source of the air, I looked at the sight, confused. I could've sworn that I left my window to within two inches of being completely shut, but now, it was placed nearly half-open: had my memory failed me? The cool morning air had loosened the frame up a bit, so it moved easier (though still not without some resistance and loud creaks) when I proceeded to open it completely. What I _did_ remember was the odd scene I saw the previous night, so I poked my head out the window in the hopes that I would find it again. The little, rusty cat had vanished, and the swarm of frantic birds was long gone.

I tugged the window back down with both hands, puzzled as to how it opened during the night. I closed my eyes and focused intently on the images in my memory, positive that I didn't leave it open. Someone else must've done it, but the list of possible, "friendly" suspects was virtually empty, unless...this was a different case of _someone_ trying to get _in._ The thought of a thief breaking in didn't frighten me for obvious reasons, but...Pff. Dark? Naww. He's not going to arrive in real life anytime soon, so I might as well possess a healthy fear of opened bedroom windows.

After verifying that the window was _shut_ for my own sake, I took a glance outside while running through the possibilities again. When I did, I noticed something that supported my theory: fingerprints, two on the outside, which weren't there last night. I held up my fingers in front of the glass, careful not to touch it, to compare their size. They were twice as big as mine and of the same hand. Why did they only amount to two? Of all the ways to open a window, none requires merely two prints to be left behind, and this window was stuck hard enough in its frame to cancel the option of opening it with one hand. Their size led to the inevitable assumption of the uninvited guest being male, but there was no reason to deny his other hand some use? No wonder he didn't open it all the way.

I laughed at the idea of the person struggling to open the creaky, sticky window with one hand. Soon enough, I was laughing at myself for analyzing fingerprints. _Too much anime, Alyssa, too much anime._

I grabbed the Windex bottle and a paper towel to wipe the window back down to its previous faultlessness, so that I could forget about it easier. I had no way of finding whoever owned those prints, and the only thing I could do about it would be to keep an eye out if it ever happened again. However, I couldn't bring myself to be truly concerned about this, because I couldn't get my mind off of Dark with all the oddities happening lately. It calmed me to pretend that the thief was him, despite what I _knew_, and however pathetic the other part of me thought it was - because no one else would try to break in to _my_ _room_, right? That couldn't possibly happen to _me__._

I had to clear my mind and think rationally. One thing suddenly ambushed my thoughts: was I on the road to what she had referred to - could Lena have been my nighttime visitor?

Lena.

It was too early to expect anyone to be on a computer, so I passed the time showering, cooking up some things, and organizing _everything_ until the afternoon came around. When at last I noticed that it did, I dashed through the kitchen, turned the corner and flew down the stairs to the computer with the intent of waiting as long as it would take for her. I found some other internet acquaintances to IM while I waited and pondered explanations. Several minutes went by of me masking these tangled thoughts behind nonchalant instant messages. Throughout all that time, I tapped my fingers against the computer desk with impatience. Lena seemed like the right person to ask, and I wanted to see her log in. Soon.

The very second that those last words ran through my mind, she logged in.

_Coincidence, _I told myself, shaking it off. I could only take so much weirdness at a time.

"Hello?" I greeted her.

"Did you have a good sleep?" she responded.

"Hey, I've been meaning to ask you something about that," I typed. I waited for her to respond and give me her attention before asking if she knew about last night.

"Listen - I'm kinda busy. Remember what I said. Get off the computer and go upstairs." She logged off seconds after sending the message.

_She must be someone who has been to my house before - how else could she know that my computer is in the basement? Maybe she was the huge-fingered guest that stopped by my room? Could this she actually be a 'he'?_

It didn't make any sense to me. Nothing these past two days did, aside from the fact that my quest for "odd" and "interesting" was coming along nicely.

_Should I actually do what she said to? What is going upstairs going to do to me? If she is a friend of mine, how am I going to tell her that I mistook her for a thief?_

I shut down the computer and, after a few minutes of more thought, went cautiously up the stairs to the living room, which contained a large landscape window overlooking the front walk. I sat there gazing out of it, waiting eagerly for a car, related vehicle, or pedestrian to come by. One car was directed toward my house – I watched it closely, eyes focused like a hawk, preparing myself for anything – until it drove right past. Another car did the same, and yet another drove by into the distance.

_It's been fifteen minutes. What are you thinking, Alyssa? Nothing's going to happen!_

I shook my head and turned around with my back to the window.

_Some person you probably know just told you to go upstairs. Even if you didn't know her, so what? It could've been a lucky guess. But the name certainly wasn't a lucky guess…_

I got up and walked away to find a book from my room, but I still couldn't get Lena out of my mind, so I brought it into the living room to read in the case that her words held meaning. Should any events take place, I had quick access to a door.

Sitting in an organized, stylish, window-filled and sunny living room with the house completely spotless, reading a good book in the blissful quiet…That was my definition of a peaceful summer vacation.

_THUD THUD THUD._

My whole body jumped a foot off the couch when a rough knock on the front door disturbed my created calm. I didn't hear the loud footsteps that the mailman typically made. Maybe I should've allowed myself full view of that front walk? I was walking over to the door, heart pounding, still shaking from the surprise, when I heard a gentle knock on the _side_ door. My imagination took strange turns, trying to prepare my mind for several of the worst scenarios in the few seconds I had before turning the handle. The only motivation I had for opening the door after meeting this Lena entity was that after I found out who the people were, I'd probably realize that it was just a big joke I fell for. Then it would all be over. Done. My worries would end, and I would go back to my fate of having "mundane" stamped on my forehead, but this time right next to "gullible".

I gingerly inched nearer to the front door first, seeing as I was closer to it, but because it had no peephole, I couldn't look through the door and give the mayhem a quick end – I couldn't answer my own questions without revealing myself and standing face to face with a potential hysterically-laughing insomnia catalyst.

I stifled my breath and placed a hand on the doorknob. In this silence, the person, irritated, knocked harder on the door.

"I - I'm coming," I said, just loud enough for the person to hear.

"Then hurry up already!" a male voice responded.

I placed my other hand on top of the one that was already there, feeling nervous. I'd never heard this voice before. _Go! _I urged myself, and yanked the door open.

Nope. I'd never seen him before in my life.

Standing there was a guy who looked slightly older than I was, of a tall, athletic build. His overall expression didn't look too happy (probably due to me taking my sweet old time), but I didn't notice that until later; what caught my attention first was his light orange hair and liquid-fire eyes. He eyed me up a little and studied my nervous stance, and upon judging my relatively slight size and feminine appearance, his expression softened. Before I could panic about the fact that he was a complete stranger to me (and that I was rudely _staring_ at this unusual stranger), he spoke:

"You're the girl? Alyssa?"

He spoke in an uncaring, uninterested, and emotionless manner, but there was no need for emotion in his voice. His eyes carried it all. They were serious, ever distant, a freezing blaze of deep orange…almost inhuman, they were so captivating. I blinked once and waited for him to say more, until I came to my senses and recalled that he just asked me a question.

"Oh, umm, yeah, I'm Alyssa all right, um, who might you b-"

"Move. I'm coming in." The guy elbowed me harshly out of the way, trudged through the door and took off his shoes and backpack.

_He just marched right in and he's too big for me to shove back out! I've never exactly dealt with this type of person before! What do I do? Oh, and the other door...!_

I scurried over to the side door on the other side of the house, with the orange-haired one following me curiously, and opened it without hesitation. I didn't have any expectations at that point. If someone with orange hair and eyes could show up and barge in, anything went.

When the door flew open, I gave a silent gasp.

Another male – closer to my age and height, with ice-blue hair and matching eyes that were even colder than the other's – dodged out of the way of the outward-turning door and now stood in front of me. He had this subtle smile on his face, with the sort of distant emotion equally as captivating as the other one's eyes. I couldn't help my staring at this one, either. There was something about his looks, the way he stood, even the way he pushed his glasses back on after the door knocked them off, that bound me where I stood. I twisted my head to examine the orange-haired one's features again, and then looked back – I knew no men with such desirable proportions as these two. Their un-earthly stature was an exciting news shock to my brain that wouldn't be easy to get over. How many minutes had passed since I answered the door, anyway?

Even though their visages signaled that they couldn't be from this planet, they looked oddly familiar. I had to think, I had to think… My brain couldn't compute anything at that moment.

But wait. In the midst of my panic, how could I forget the similarities these people had with…

"Hello, miss," the blue-haired one's soft, musical voice floated through the doorway. He was kind enough to wait until I was ready for this blow - he knew who he was, and he knew who I was.

His voice didn't take long to reach me, but it took a while for my brain to process it, as it did with all the rest of their features. I was so focused on trying to remember him, on the fact that I should _know_ him. I did. His voice, it finally played through my head, saying things other than the greeting he just spoke. Orange-hair's voice, too. They sounded _more_ than just "familiar." I couldn't cancel out the possibility anymore.

I was looking at Kyo Sohma and Satoshi Hikari.

* * *

I lost all sense of myself. Suddenly it was just emptiness, blackness, just me talking to myself in my own mind.

They could _not_ be people in costumes and wigs and contact lenses, because their proportions were different: their eyes were obviously larger, their necks smaller, their shoulders squarer, and their jaws more defined than possible for humans; not to mention their hair defied almost every law that human hair followed; their voices sounded as if they got a vocal-cord transplant from the actual voice actors themselves; their movement patterns, reactions, and personalities were spot-on; cosplayers didn't even come close to this breed. They were perfect. They were real. This was _so weird_.

Original works of art became human beings...Frames on a television became flesh-and-blood people...Ink and pixels became my own kind, and they were _just_ standing in front of me. Where did they go? Where _was_ I?

My mind was bombarded with a whole new variety of questions. If they came to be, why didn't Dark? Dark...It was possible now, with this universal law that changed so conveniently in my favor.

Slowly but surely, I was shown a glimpse of that blinding light again. This part, at least, made sense to me: the shock was too much, and I passed out. While my eyes adjusted to the light that seeped through my closed eyelids, I was equipped with conscious logical reasoning again. How long had I been out? I didn't want to keep them waiting! I had so much to ask them! _Kyo and Satoshi!_

When my eyes finally opened and I came to, I expected my head to be throbbing from hitting something. I was, however, lying on a couch in the living room, with both of them sitting on the carpeting in front of me.

There weren't any words for this.

Kyo and Satoshi did not notice my awakening, and continued in conversation. I listened in awe to their voices as they sought out each other's business with me. By the sound of it, they weren't teamed together, and came individually.

"Kyo, settle it for a minute. Alyssa just woke up."

My eyes opened fully to the sight of Satoshi leaning over me with concern. "Go get her a glass of water and a damp cloth, please."

Kyo, who remained seated near my head, shouted in protest. "Why the hell do I have to? If you know so much about what to do, why don't you do it, huh?"

Satoshi looked meaningfully from his face to mine and back. Apparently, my expression conveyed well the stunned state I was in, and it scared Kyo into acting as fast as he could.

While Kyo was in the kitchen, Satoshi relaxed and gave me that small grin again. "Can you move? Speak?"

As I sat up, I nodded my head and smiled widely. Without so much as taking my eyes off of him for a split second, I replied, "I can. My thoughts are still jumbled up, and...What happened?"

Satoshi paused and waited for Kyo, who was on his return trip with the items requested. "Drink," Kyo commanded, and handed me the cloth with a cold glare. "It's about time you woke up! We waited for half an hour!"

Satoshi effortlessly returned that same glare to him, taking him by surprise. "What did _she_ say?"

After some hesitation, Kyo heaved a huge sigh of defeat. "How are you…feeling…?" he asked as calmly as he could.

I stared at him again, disregarding his unkind words. His face…he was blushing in embarrassment for asking such a question, but not as humans did. Little pink lines appeared on his face, and my staring furthered their numbers. This was most definitely the ultimate proof of what many would have trouble believing.

I took Kyo's repeated agitated expression as a cue that I missed something again.

"Oh, uh, I'm fine now, thank you." When I was finished with the glass, I returned it to him. "I'm still blown away, though. You guys are...real. I can't get over it."

Kyo had already walked off to the kitchen again, so my eyes traveled to Satoshi, who had sat down near my feet.

"May I?" I asked with obvious longing.

"Go right ahead," he gave me an understanding nod. I could definitely get used to the presence of a genius who could understand where my train of thought was going before it even left the station.

With a careful hand, I reached over slowly to touch his hair; it was soft, and it was certainly real. "You're human," I mumbled breathlessly.

"Yes, in fact, I am."

I quickly put my hand at my side and was silent until Kyo returned to being seated on the floor. "Please, _please_ begin the explanations!"

"It's complicated how and why we're here," Satoshi looked out into the distance, as if trying to remember everything.

"I've got all day!" I said a little too loudly, wishing he could've told the story as fast as he could, just so I could listen to his wonderfully soothing voice with the excuse of "I didn't hear what you said, could you repeat that?"

"We just came to life, somehow," he replied with a shrug.

"THAT is _complicated_ to you?" Kyo pointed a finger at him.

"Well hey, it's true. You don't know either," Satoshi stated with confidence.

"I really want to! She didn't tell us anything!" he said, looking at his hands with a terrible confusion. He turned around to face away from us. "I guess that does make it complicated."

I paused before speaking. Twice now, another female was mentioned. I questioned, "Who is this...this 'she'?"

Kyo didn't move an inch, so Satoshi filled in the answer for him. "Last night, around midnight, we materialized separately a few blocks away from here, and a feminine voice without source gave us a few instructions."

"A disembodied voice?"

"Correct."

Another box to check on the list of "weird". "Did she give a name?"

"No, she only told us yours - at least, she only told _me_ yours." He finished and gestured toward Kyo. "Did she tell _you_ anything interesting?"

"Me?" Kyo turned his head to the side. "No, she just told me that she was responsible for me, and that I needed to find Alyssa or else I wouldn't be able to stay in this form. Then she –"

His face showed signs of irritation and anger, and he turned his head back away from us to stew in his thoughts in silence. I couldn't ask them anything else about the female entity, because they knew nothing else about her. She didn't have a body, and she knew about me? As well as being so myself, I could see the others lost in confusion, seeking any answers that they could.

"Alyssa, what was it you said about Dark?" Satoshi wondered. "While you were out, you kept mumbling his name."

I turned red. "I think your creator heard me wrong." I took on a sarcastic tone. "Honestly, last night, I uhh...I wished to a star. Yup. I wished that Dark would come to life, but you two are here instead, because everyone knows how close 'Satoshi' and 'Kyo' sound to 'Dark', right?"

"Hmm..." He was completely silent as he mused over these things.

"Well, anyway," I said, realizing that nothing more could be shared on the matter, "I'm sorry for collapsing on you like that. Might as well re-wind and start off on the right foot, right?"

Their eyes softened and their postures relaxed further as I said this. They must've been expecting me to be of an arrogant sort. Kyo spun around dutifully when he sensed a sharp command from Satoshi around the corner.

"It's so wonderful to meet you here, Kyo, in _person_!" My thoughts jumped when I said those last words and extended my hand. He stood up to meet me where I stood.

Returned to a better mood, he said, "You too." His handshake was strong, firm, and less tense than I thought it would be. Really, it was immensely welcoming.

I shook Satoshi's hand; he followed this up with a slight nod of his head. With his light, delicate movements, he was definitely himself. "Nice to meet you too, Alyssa."

Despite all that conversation with them, I wasn't myself yet. The excitement and shock would never completely wear off as long as they were here, though fainting did take off the edge. With that in mind, I asked where I landed, because I wasn't experiencing any pain.

"I _caught _you," Kyo whined. "Being a martial arts student, I've got good reflexes. But you really owe me. You almost had me transforming! It would've been better off just leaving you to fall!"

Somehow, smoke made its way out of Kyo's ears and danced along the ceiling.

"Transforming?" Satoshi thought aloud. "Hm." He committed that slip of Kyo's tongue to memory.

"Uh-…just forget it," he replied, calming himself down again.

"Thank you for that though, because a bump on the head wouldn't be too good for a meeting like this," I said lightheartedly.

Kyo stared at me for a minute, not expecting yet another "thank you". He gave the smallest (and I mean _smallest_) of smiles, and a couple pink lines drew themselves across his face again.

"Kyo, Satoshi, set your belongings anywhere you'd like. I need to show you two around!" I got up and motioned for them to follow me. The house only consisted of a ground-level floor and a basement, but it had tons of windows and was still roomy enough to hold a decent sized group. After passing by all of the other rooms, I stopped at mine.

"This is my bedroom," I pointed into the small, brightly colored room. They both stepped inside to look around.

"Why is it that color?" began Kyo. "Now that I think of it, it harmonizes with Satoshi's hair perfectly!" He gave him an evil glance and prepared a fist for a noogie.

"Oh, that was a big word. Are you sure you know what 'harmonizing' means?" Satoshi said to the side, invoking Kyo's anger.

"What was that, four-eyes?"

"It's my favorite color," I informed them, before they could argue any further. "Light green."

"It's sickening! Isn't a little too…bright?" Kyo asked me, puzzled by my strange interest.

"It may be bright, but I prefer it that way. In the dark, like anything, you wouldn't be able to tell."

As I said "dark", I achingly began to think about him, pained that his existence was actually possible now. Satoshi's look brought me out of my own mind, because he looked like he was sharing in my emotions - he looked pained, too. That expression...What was he thinking of? Or rather...looking at?

I traced his eyes and found them transfixed on the window. The window…it was starting to make sense now.

"Satoshi?" I asked eagerly, so excited that I couldn't hold myself back.

"What?" he reacted, jerking his head from the window to me.

"Do you…uhh…um…is he…in you still? Krad, I mean?"

"Krad? _Really?_ Alyssa, why do you want to know if that _demon _still exists?"

_Because he's a magical being. Because I saw last night that he really could fly. Because, in some ways, he's similar to Dark._

I gave him a puppy-dog face, and it seemed he couldn't refuse. "Krad…" he said skeptically, not wanting him to come out. Though he knew the answer, he asked anyway. "Krad, are you there?"

Inside his head, Satoshi heard an answer and gave a moan of disappointment.

"Yes, Krad is present as well."

I asked if he could possibly let him out for me to say hello, without even noting the risk I was taking. I was so desperate to see someone like Dark, to talk to someone like Dark, even if it meant meeting his evil counterpart to get a taste for what it would be like.

"You really want me to let Krad out?"

"What's to lose? Just tell him not to destroy the place."

"'What's to lose'? The house? An arm? _Your life_? He won't listen if I tell him not to! Shall I simply tell him your message for you?"

"Just once? May I meet him just once?"

"N–" Satoshi realized something and gave up the fight. "You just won't give up, will you? Krad, I can't believe I'm doing this!"

Satoshi then immediately bent over with a slight shriek, and I _almost_ regretted asking him to let Krad out. "You could've at least saved some time by keeping your wings off!" he yelled during the transformation. There were a lot of groans trying to be held in, the pain of his wings coming out nearly unbearable; their initial stage tore holes in the back of Satoshi's shirt, and with a big _whoosh_, they emerged fully and spanned out behind him. The size of my room wasn't enough for the enormous feathery masses.

_They're larger than I imagined. I'm going to have quite the mess of feathers in here._

Suddenly, his eyes converted from ice to a deep gold, his hair from blue to floor-length blond, and his height increased more than a foot in a matter of seconds.

He stood up, shining in a voluminous white robe edged in gold with wings now folded at his side. I forgot to breathe while I scanned and committed the towering figure's features to memory. His hair floated hauntingly around him, and although gravity never took it over, he fastened it back, saving one long strand amidst the jagged locks to frame his face. A tiny cross hung from the ends of the portion he tied and nearly touched the floor.

Once he stretched a bit, Krad performed an ever-classic smirk. Spatial limitations forced him into within a foot's distance of myself.

_What a stunning person…_

"I know that I have not been present physically, but I have been in Satoshi's mind. I know everything he has learned from you." He gave a slight laugh, staring at his now-human hands, radiating a kind of evilly indulgent joy. "Greetings, Miss Alyssa," he said, with those molten-gold eyes locked on to mine.

I remembered that I needed to breathe. "Krad…H-hello."

He held out a large white-gloved hand for me; the index and middle fingers of the glove itself were missing, baring two large yet slender fingers. The torn edges appeared charred.

Two fingers. I finally found the answer.

I felt like a flea compared to the graceful, angelic form next to me. I found his preferred style of communication to be odd. He never seemed to smile; he was always smirking, and every smirk seemed to say something different. He could probably get through life without saying a word. I subconsciously waited for an uncomfortably sinful look to dominate his countenance, for it was characteristic of his kind, but it didn't come.

When he extended his hand, it was more like an offer to dance instead of a handshake. I cautiously laid my hand in his, and he bowed swiftly down to meet it to his lips. Following this action, he did not straighten himself again – he enjoyed the fact that it brought his face closer to mine. With him now frightfully only inches away, he caught me in his gaze and held me there. I didn't know what to do. He was the epitome of beauty, grace and evil.

_Krad, what on earth are you doing?_ thought Satoshi to him.

_Winning her over by the usual methods,_ Krad replied playfully.

_You know it's not that easy. The honest truth is…_?

_Are you saying I never tell the truth, dear Satoshi?_

_That's the worst joke I've ever heard._

Sarcastically, Krad declared, _You just don't want to enjoy being a human and make the most of the time we have here._

_That entirely depends upon your definition of making the most of time. _Unfortunately, Satoshi knew all too well what his inner demon's typical thought processes were.

Krad ended the odd moment with me and turned to greet Kyo. He finally spoke aloud. "It is a pleasure to have met you two. So I see we are now human! Are you sure you don't know what happened, mademoiselle?"

Slightly blushing because of how he addressed me, I replied that I was sure.

Kyo was almost as stunned as I was with the new arrival. Krad was so bright that we almost had to close our eyes and look away, what with the glow of his white and gold clothes, my white furniture, and the bright colors of my room.

My thoughts were overwhelmed again as I looked at Krad. _What If Dark does show up? Will he be as stunning? Dark's wings...his stance...his smile! _I reasoned that because Krad's golden eyes were much more brilliant and full of emotion in real life, Dark's amethyst ones would be totally entrancing.

I fell in love with Dark even more, but I was interrupted when those golden eyes found their way back to mine and gave me precisely the look I didn't want to see.

"In any case, this world shall be a _pleasure_," Krad smirked wickedly.


	3. Masked Identities

CHAPTER 3

The few seconds Krad spent circling around Alyssa like that seemed painfully slow from the patient, ritual-like deliberateness in his steps. Kyo felt the need to do something – he couldn't just stand there and watch Krad act in any way he pleased. That look in his eyes was creeping him out. Was it even legal to wear that expression?

Kyo opened his mouth to speak, but the shining entity beat him to it.

"It appears I have accomplished everything asked of me," Krad gave a little bow to each of us. "I look forward to coming out again."

He lifted his head and closed his eyes; a radiant yellow glow engulfed his figure and brought him back to Satoshi's size. He soon reverted entirely back to Satoshi himself, causing the room to appear much larger, much less blinding. Compared to what had just been, the once-bright furnishings died in their brilliance.

"Agh!" Satoshi fell to his knees and gripped his sides. "Those wings…they kill…"

What could I do for him? Was Krad going to continue to hurt him?

As Satoshi attempted to straighten himself and deal with the pain, I noticed that there were no longer any gaping holes in the back of his shirt. The being that brought them to life decided to give their clothing some regeneration power – a relief, to me, who saw that they came without spare clothes. With their creator on my mind, I resolved to get at least one more thing straight, and I knew just how to go about doing that. I needed to make certain of her identity, if ever worse damage were to occur.

Icy blue eyes looked up at me with heart-breaking agony.

"Don't ever ask for him again. I'm begging you."

While he tended to his back, I exchanged a few words with my guests and departed momentarily for the basement stairs. She'd be there. I was sure.

* * *

She opened her sleepy eyes and took in her surroundings. Upon examination, she appeared to be in a dull, grayish sort of office space that was lacking any signs of life: the papers were stacked too neatly on the desk, various writing utensils and other supplies organized in an orderly fashion beside them; swiveling black office chairs were lined up in a row, untouched; weary blinds were pulled down on the windows, blocking any cheery summer sunlight from entering. The room was a gloomy sight that she didn't expect to wake up to. In fact, she hadn't the slightest idea where she was.

Sitting up on the bland, gray carpet, she examined her hands, which looked different somehow. Yes, that's right. It'd been a while since she last opened her eyes. Is this what life looked like? She couldn't remember.

Next to her own feet, she observed another set. Looking to see who they belonged to, she discovered a man lying beside her – a memorable man that she knew well, in a standard, drab business suit that coordinated with the room – fast asleep, and oblivious to the strange world she awoke to. He was a handsome man, the way she saw it: he had a tall, lean build, with a pleasant face and peaceful eyes accented by a pair of glasses. At the moment, they were crooked, for his head lay to the side. She was able to analyze things about him that she never noticed about anyone before: the way his dark hair had depth, possessing innumerable shades of deep blacks and browns; how his chest rose up and down to the steady pattern of his breathing, altering the shadows his body cast; how each item he was wearing had its own, unique quality. What happened to the outlines that once illustrated every detail about him, about every item in the room, about her? How had so much color and detail become possible?

"Sir," she ventured to nudge the man's shoulder. "Sir, wake up."

His dark eyes stirred, and as his head rose from the carpet, his glasses fell off. Narrowing his bare eyes at the girl, he moved in a little closer and frowned. "It's you. I thought you were dead. I thought _I_ was dead."

"I think you need to see this," she made a sweeping motion with her hands, presenting the room to him.

"It's my office," he said with wonder. "How did we get back here?"

"That's not it. Look harder." She picked his glasses off of the floor and handed them to the man, who slipped them on and pushed them high on his nose with a single finger.

"It looks…different!"

He turned his head back to the girl. "As do you!"

"As do _you_." The two stared at each other for a short moment, absorbing the detail.

"I've read about this before, this third dimension. I believe we have somehow arrived in a three-dimensional world. If so," he mused, "then this is the_ real_ one."

"Correct!" a voice came from all directions at once, startling them. They stood to their feet and attempted to find its source.

"Who are you?" the man asked.

"Oh, I'll tell you that fun stuff later. As for now, listen to my instructions. If you don't, you're going straight back to where you came from."

The girl marveled at her hands once more, admiring the foreign feeling of warmth flowing through them. "I don't want to go back to that," she said. "This is too cool. What do we need to do?"

"There's a girl," the mysterious, femininely high-pitched voice began, "that you're going to meet soon. More of your kind will continue to appear until the right one comes along. Once that happens, your kind will stop coming, and the ones already existing here will vanish, for her sake. It's because of her that you're both here. Others have appeared, and I've explained this to them already."

Having seated themselves in the swivel chairs, the two sat facing each other, but not looking at each other, mystified. They were real people now, existing solely because of one girl. Impossible. Why didn't the voice bring them to life when the _first_ fangirls wished them to be?

The voice, suddenly soft, continued: "You can't reveal yourselves to her until I give the word. Before that point, I've given to you a power that you're going to put to work. Do as I say, when I say. Deal?"

"Deal," the girl said.

"Deal. But, what if I don't have any interest in meeting little girls?" the man said, eyeing the girl in front of him spitefully, his glasses glinting in the sliver of light that escaped around the closed blinds.

"So predictable. I've already arranged this office space for you with that in mind. You'll be able to live normally, work behind the scenes. I've altered the documents of this world to include you as a well-known businessman among the humans here." The voice spoke quickly and calmly, showing how it had everything under control. "Be wary when you step in public. People might recognize you. I've supplied you cloaks for this reason."

They looked around until the cloaks were located.

"I'm also making this office of yours a sort of command center for everyone. There are only certain times that I can come out and speak like this – so you, mister, will do my talking for me. Understood?"

"Yes. You have my thanks, strange being, now leave me be to my work." The man scooted himself in his chair over to the desk. "As for this girl, give her something to do and get her out of here. Oh, before you go, is there a name I might address you by?"

He propped his elbows on the desk and rested his head on his hands; looking to the side, at nothing in particular, he grinned. The girl turned her back to him and sighed.

"The name's Lena," she answered.

In front of him, the man witnessed the computer turn on automatically, and a program opened without him touching a button.

"Here's your first assignment. I could do it on my own, but I've got some business to tend to. Remember, you speak in my place."

The man read the message that popped up on the screen. It was a question from a curious stranger, and he replied as he was instructed to: "Yes, I created them."

* * *

I got a few samples of "real food" out and brought the boys over to the living room again to give them the opportunity to share a little bit about themselves. Kyo, with his limbs sprawled out over an entire section of the couch, surely heeded my suggestion that he make himself comfortable; Satoshi, having recovered some, sat with his legs casually crossed while enjoying the cool air conditioning that circulated throughout the room.

Kyo was the first to speak.

"That's one freak-show of a guy you share a body with," he said, and then stuffed some potato chips into his mouth.

"To put it simply," Satoshi replied.

Kyo nodded slightly while he chewed. "Is he controllable? Can you suppress him?"

"No."

My face portrayed not nearly the amount of worry I felt. Meeting Krad seemed like such a good idea until those eyes – those exceptionally evil eyes that humans could only encounter in fiction – locked on to me like I was a target.

"He comes out when he wants to, he injures me when he wants to…he can do anything he wants to me whenever he wishes. But if I die, he dies, so he obeys me for his twisted sense of mercy." Satoshi frowned. "There's nothing I can do about it."

"Seriously?" Kyo leaned forward a little. "Nothing?"

"The only balance to this equation is that Dark fellow."

Kyo's head twisted my direction. "Who is he, anyway?"

"He's…" I paused, thinking of where to start. "He's a winged being who can use magic like Krad, be he's totally different. Just try to picture Krad's opposite." The image of Dark flooded my mind and kept me from continuing.

Kyo's eyes travelled upward as he, too, thought up a mental image. To help him out, I walked back through the hall to my room and brought out the drawing I made the day before.

"This is what he looks like," I said, handing it to Kyo. Satoshi leaned closer to Kyo to get a better view of it, and I noticed his eyes pop with sudden interest.

"You drew this?" Satoshi asked, amazed.

"With some help," I shrugged.

"It looks just like him!" the professional-level artist exclaimed, appraising every detail. He gave me a soft grin and forgot the topic of conversation entirely. "I wasn't expecting you to have this level of talent. Tell me, what else do you do?"

Kyo reluctantly paid attention to my answer, not really caring, but knowing that the knowledge might do him some good.

I turned and pointed to the little upright piano, afraid to say anything. I could indeed play the piano, but in my eyes, I didn't play it well.

"Do you mind playing a piece?"

"If _you_ don't mind," I said, sheepishly. I felt that Satoshi, a grand artist and admirer of the arts, was deserving of something more pleasing to the ears than I could offer. "I'm not the best musician you'll find."

"Save that for later and just play something already," Kyo hissed.

Without further ado, I seated myself at the piano and flipped to something that I was sure would surprise them. Satoshi's unofficial theme, straight from his anime, was the first thing I played; secondly, I played the theme song to Kyo's. I was very nervous when I did so, because I worried that Kyo wouldn't appreciate piano music much. He didn't seem to mind, but yet he didn't seem to enjoy it.

"That song is so_ lame_" was the first thing that came out of his mouth when I had finished.

"Thanks!" I dared to stomp on his foot.

"Ow! Geez, lady! Don't get me wrong, you played fine! It's the song itself!"

"…Hey, Kyo?"

I sat down on the couch beside him. Still rubbing his foot, he looked at me flatly. "Huh?"

"Can I hug you?"

Satoshi was taken aback by this odd request that was totally contradictory to the atmosphere.

"Why would you want to…" Kyo started, not knowing what to say. He looked away, visibly reddening. I knew that there was no way _he'd_ ever voluntarily hug _me_.

I stretched my arms out, guardedly; but, when he saw them, he smacked them down with instinctive speed and turned around with alerted eyes.

"No, don't hug me! Bug off!"

"But Kyo, I –"

"No!"

He speedily took for the other side of the room, but Satoshi grabbed his wrist along the way and whipped him around with one swift motion. I had followed Kyo to that point, and suddenly his looming figure was coming straight for me. He was thrown off balance, and landed against me; in the path of my fall, the sharp edge of an end table was doomed to hit my head. This time, Kyo's instinct was to protect me and not push me away. In the split second that we fell, I felt his arms twist me to the side, and then they were gone. All I could see was a cloud of dense, white smoke.

When the smoke cleared, I saw that Kyo's clothes were just to the side of me, and a little orange-colored cat with a tiny black throbbing mark on his head sat near the base of the end table.

"Satoshi…!" the cat screeched.

"So I see," Satoshi spoke to himself. "He's a cat."

"I'M NOT A CAT! I JUST TRANSFORM INTO ONE!" Kyo yelled.

After I steadied myself and organized Kyo's clothes into a neat pile, I proceeded to pick him up. He tried to scratch and squirm out of my hold, but gave up after a little while, finding it futile.

"This is why I wanted to hug you, Kyo! I wanted to see if your transformation worked, and it _does_!"

"Why are you so _happy_ about it?" the cat retorted.

"Because it's incredible, and you're really a very cute cat."

Satoshi looked on with amusement, and ventured to stroke Kyo's head. "Yes, a very cute cat you are."

"Shut up, you."

They squabbled on and on, and I couldn't have minded any less. I didn't want them to ever stop talking. I realized, then that I was a very special person: the only human to ever witness an honest-to-goodness talking cat. How was I going to explain this to my family when they returned home? This day so far was unexplainable, unreal, and I didn't know what to do with that, but all I knew for certain was that I wanted it to continue. I wanted to wake up to a shouting cat and a charming genius in the morning instead of silence. It would make me…happy.

But the precious little time I had…. My mother had said that she and my brother would return in a week's time. I had a week to spend in a dream – the dream I was so scared of having – and what would happen when it was over? If my wish wouldn't come true, could this still be the best few days of my life, or would I only remember it as "the time that Dark _could've_ been real"?

"Satoshi, Kyo," my words cut short a potentially cat-infuriating insult in the middle of its utterance, "you're…you're staying the night, right?"

The both looked at me like I missed something.

"I have to," Satoshi said. "I have nowhere else to go where fangirls or informed individuals won't find me."

The little cat nodded in agreement, causing a huge smile to come to my face. They would be here tomorrow. They would be here!

"That's good."

Satoshi leaned forward, grinned, adjusted his glasses. "It's nice to see you smiling like that," he said. I could feel a sudden rush of warmth in my face, something I wasn't used to.

Soon after he processed his own words, he showed signs of worry.

_You and I need to have a little chat, _Krad said within him, where no one but Satoshi could hear. _Now. Or else I come out._

"Excuse me for a moment," Satoshi bowed his head, and then walked toward the front door, leaving the cat alone. "I'll be back shortly."

I looked down at the cat in my arms and shrugged. Neither of us knew what to think about his sudden departure.

Minutes after he left, there was a deafening, heart-stopping knock on the same door Satoshi exited through. The cat shot out of my hold in surprise, and I could hear the sound of my breath being drawn in sharply.

Hopeful, I turned around the corner to face the front door. It couldn't be, but I wanted it to be, and it needed to be!

I inhaled deeply and opened the door.

"Delivery!" a man dressed in a uniform and hat declared boldly, looking down at a small box before handing it to me. My heart shrank as low as it could in complete disappointment, and there was almost a sensation of pain when its anxious beat skipped one and died back down to a slow pace.

The mailman?

I took the box from him, and he hung in the doorway while I read the label.

The "from" label read a name that I'd never heard of before – "Dave Irata" – and didn't have an address.

"There is a message from the sender that I have been requested to deliver," the delivery man said.

"Why couldn't he just enclose it in the package?" I asked.

"Because I am a close friend of Mr. Irata, and it regards you opening the box."

I took a long look at the man, and my mind was screaming that something was off. I figured it out: there were long shadows being cast across his face by his hat, blocking the details of his face from my sight. It was evening, and the sun was going to sink into the horizon soon. Mailmen never came this late.

Suspicious of him now, I asked what the message was.

"The message is that you are not supposed to open that box until I give the word," he removed his hat and bowed formally but dramatically, "my lady, Alyssa."

From underneath the hat poured out tremendously long, graciously flowing strands of silvery-white hair. His head resurfaced from his bow, closer this time, revealing beautiful yellow-green eyes and youthful pallid skin that were too calming and soft in hue to allow my heart to speed up again like it should have.

Dramatic entries like this were exactly his style.

"Aya?" I whispered while blinking excessively. I couldn't believe that another one of them appeared. This caused me to feel joy and happiness, but also frustration and confusion. These people were going to keep on coming, weren't they? Should I think of that as good or bad?

I felt something caress my jaw and work its way to my chin; the man tilted my face upward and leaned in toward my ear. He softened his voice to a relaxingly smooth level: "Is there something so wrong with my name, that you cannot say it all?"

"Of course not…Ayame."

Just when I was about to pluck his hand off of me and move it away, he brought his arms to his sides and showed me his most charming of grins.

Then he instantly switched moods.

"YES!" he gave a thumbs-up. "I know, I know, you've been waiting in misery for this moment! I'm finally here! You can rest at ease, now, that Ayame is here!" He pointed toward himself and smiled a huge, cheesy smile.

Kyo, who could finally hear the voice from inside, gave the most annoyed look _ever._ Anything but this. Anything in the world. Dogs. Yuki. A bath. Anyone but _Ayame_.

Ayame let himself in and placed his shoes and hat wherever he felt inclined to. A glow came to his face when he saw the little orange cat in the process of hiding itself behind a couch.

"Kyonkichi, is that you?" he asked.

"No!" Kyo responded. "That's not my name!"

"Good, because that means I get some alone time with Future-Mrs.-Ayame-Sohma –"

By that time, Kyo had run over and bit his ankle. Immediately after, Kyo was spitting and coughing.

"Disgusting floral foot lotion! Agh!"

Ayame clapped his hands together twice and lowered his high-pitched flowery tone to being low, stern and serious. "Come, now, Alyssa, please fix that up for me."

Tiny drops of blood were welling where he was bitten, so I went to get a bandage and a few other items. I returned with them and sat Ayame down in a nearby chair. He didn't stop talking the whole time.

"You have my thanks for your hard labor! MY thanks! Don't you feel like royalty now? I must say, I almost feel guilty, watching her hard-worn hands work and work for my sake!"

"Almost?" Kyo mumbled, and I emitted nervous laughter as I unraveled a bandage.

"What a fine job you've done, Miss Alyssa! It'll be nice to have you around." I finished with his ankle and kneeled upright; Ayame leaned closer. "Getting a thank-you from me will obviously repay every act of kindness (it always does!), but in the case that it doesn't, there is a particular payment that I deem you worthy of (how lucky are you?) that I like to call –"

"Pervert!" Kyo hissed. His furry forehead turned a deep shade of purple, and small gloom-lines appeared above his head. "Just stop talking already!"

"Oh, Alyssa, I think I may request one more thing? Use those lovely lips you have to make it feel better –"

Kyo threatened Ayame with a fierce hiss and bit him again.

"Alyssa, my comfort, my savior, I need you!"

He reached for me dramatically, grabbed my hand, and drew me to a sideways seated position on his lap, where he pushed his movement to the limits: he placed one hand behind my head, drawing our foreheads together, and the other behind my back. Something glistened beneath one of his eyes during his exaggerated display of need, and then I was surrounded by that dense white smoke again. He vanished from under me, causing me to plop down onto the chair.

A lengthy white snake made itself comfortable around my neck.

"May I stay here, upon your hard-working shoulders? The air in here is a tad cool for comfort." His tongue forked a strange snaky greeting on my cheek.

"That pervert," the cat hissed while escaping to the living room. I followed and sat on one of the couches.

"Ayame, I'm glad you could make it! This is definitely a…surprise."

"I know!" the snake chuckled. "Isn't it?"

* * *

_What do you want, Krad?_ Satoshi thought. He found himself a secluded park bench a couple blocks down, and sat in such a way as to hide his face from potential passersby.

_Why must you be so cold, Master Satoshi?_

Satoshi didn't answer.

_Oh, I just wish to discuss an important matter with you._

Satoshi's eyebrows creased in frustration. _Shall I prepare some tea?_

_Beforehand, _Krad said with a severe tone, ignoring Satoshi's comment, _why did you come all the way out here, when you could have just found another room in Miss Alyssa's house?_

_I want to keep all conversations with you far away from her, _Satoshi thought. _I don't want her to worry._

_Well then. Shall we get down to business?_

Once again, Satoshi didn't answer.

_This is all based on something our creator told us when we first came into existence. Do you remember that?_

Satoshi thought for a moment. _She said a lot of things._

_What I am referring to is when she said that more of our kind will continue to appear until the one that makes her content – the "right" one – does; and how, after he does appear, the rest will have to vanish from this world. We both know who the person in question is, do we not?_

Satoshi nodded.

_She could have just said "Dark", could she not have?_

Satoshi nodded more slowly, as he understood Krad's point.

_What I am proposing is that the "right" one is not limited to Dark, but includes anyone who is able to make Miss Alyssa happy._

_Where are you going with this?_ Satoshi questioned.

_I desire Dark's permanent absence, and with this realization, it is possible!_

_Let me get this straight, _Satoshi said with a heavily disapproving tone: _You want to take Dark's place in her life, so that he won't come into existence? You want to get her to fall in _love_ with you? Somehow I find that difficult to imagine._

_Not just me. You could very well fill in that position yourself, Master Satoshi. Or did you not notice how she glowed when you complimented her earlier?_

Satoshi was brought back to the image of my face at that moment, smiling, delirious upon hearing that he would stick around. _Krad, something tells me that there is nothing I can do to rid her of her feelings for Dark, no matter how hard I try, simply because of who I am._

_There is no room for failure, dear Satoshi. If you do, I will take over. No worries, though; in such cases as you have described, magic is extraordinarily useful._

_What?_

An eerily sinister laugh echoed in Satoshi's head. He brought his knees to his chest and sighed despairingly at the thought of what was to come. If he wanted to hold off the damaging potential of Krad's magic, he'd have to follow through with this plan himself.

* * *

"Give me the box."

"No! 'Tis not for thee."

"At least let me see what's in it before she opens it!"

"Oh but Kyon-kyon, if _you_ _did__, _it'd ruin the _surprise!_"

Kyo's ears twitched with irritation. "You make it sound so wrong," he growled.

I smiled politely as I reached for the box and placed it in my lap. "A present, huh?" I said, gently lifting and shaking it, finding it to be startlingly lightweight and airy. I was still suspicious of the name written in the "from" label, for I knew nothing of the man.

"Ayame, who is this…Dave?"

"Ah yes, Dave! He's a wonderful man who doesn't live too far from here: my life-giving savior! He knew from the dawn of his time that someone was missing from your life, and so he molded my very (beautiful) existence with his own two hands! Earlier on this morning, I was dead, but now I have life, life that I desire to dedicate to you!" Ayame's snake-head twisted high into the air for dramatic affect.

Little blue gloom lines rested upon the orange cat's head.

I was too lost in thought to hear any more of Ayame's rant. This man, Dave Irata, gave him life? A man? But Kyo and Satoshi said the voice was distinctly feminine, and without form. Here, Ayame spoke of where the man resided. Was this man also behind the scenes?

"Are you sure he's the one who brought you to life?" I asked, peering over at Kyo. He understood my train of thought after only a few seconds. "And that he's a he?"

"Yes, yes!" Ayame's head swung off my shoulder and around to face me. "He greeted me in person when I woke up and explained everything."

I worked my way through feelings of trepidation and made up my mind.

"You said you know where he lives? I think I need to pay him a visit."

"But Miss Alyssa, he said that none of us are to go to him unless by request. If we do, there are these things called 'consequences', that according to Hatori are not pleasant, and…"

Disappointed, I slouched and my eyes wandered in attempt to erase the hopes of meeting this Dave Irata any time soon. In the process, they landed on the neatly folded clothes on the end of the couch. I wasn't given too much time to think, right then.

A thick cloud of smoke emerged from Kyo's direction, and it didn't immediately register that that was my cue to look away until I saw the smoke begin a gradual fade from around his now-human head and bare shoulders. Ayame coiled once around my face.

"Let me shelter your bright blue eyes, your sweet, innocent mind, from Kyo's unworthy physique!" Ayame cried out. "Now I, on the other hand, can personally arrange for –"

From his spot at the other side of the room, Kyo looked at the snake on my neck with inexplicable malice – he had only time to put on some jeans before his anger took over – and took one angry step, then two, before another cloud of white smoke appeared.

Krad stopped in his tracks on the way to the front door in the dark. The front window looked peculiarly foggy. When it cleared, he noticed only two people in the giant living room window; one of them, only half-dressed, seemed to be looking at the other in a most passionate way whilst inching forward.

_Kyo? _thought Satoshi inside him. _And Alyssa? What is going on in there? He looks very…worked up? Surely, she couldn't have angered him to this point. Could they…_

"The young miss somehow doesn't seem to mind the advancement," Krad said aloud with interest, seeing the situation the way Satoshi did. "Your job might already be done." Then he noticed what he and his host had missed in the picture.

"Miss Alyssa?" he marched through the front door and glared at the silver-haired young man standing near me, ranting on about something, stark naked; I shook nervously from the manner of his transformation and burrowed my face into the back of the couch with my eyes shut, nearly failing to notice Krad's entry.

"GET OVER HERE, YOU FOOL, AND LET ME TEACH YOU SOMETHING!" Kyo roared and locked Ayame's head in his arms.

"NOT THE HAIR! NO, NOT THE FACE!" Ayame whined.

_Krad, get her out of here while those two settle whatever they need to settle! I'm begging you, she doesn't need to see that!_

Two white-and-gold arms lifted me from where I sat; suddenly, the world around me was made of pure white feathers. I was led back several steps into the kitchen, and then allowed to stand freely. Turning, I found Krad smirking a silent greeting, looking like he was pleased to run into me again. I breathed a sigh of relief that he rescued me from the chaos and gave me a little circle of feathery peace. When I shifted my thoughts from Ayame to the fact that I was but a foot away from Krad again, I grew quiet.

"Thanks," I said softly, cautiously, made suddenly conscious of his power. His expression did not change.

"That new man is a Sohma?" Krad spoke, after waiting for one of Kyo's loud battle cries to die down.

"Yes, Ayame transforms like Kyo, but into a snake. He wanted to rest around my neck, saying he needed rescue from the air conditioning, but I forgot all about their return transformations, and…that happened."

"I see."

When I spoke, I had looked him in the eyes, but their stone-cold quality made it impossible to keep up. I shifted my gaze to the wings that surrounded me and we waited in silence for the final verbal blows to come to a close.

Krad lowered his wings just enough to peek over them. Ayame's head surprised us by peeking over the other side.

"Who might you be, honored guest?" Ayame asked, now fully dressed in red and gold. Krad folded his wings to his sides and answered with his name.

Kyo saw the stern look on Krad's face, so he and I answered all of Ayame's other questions for him.

Suddenly, Ayame faced me and bowed deeply. "I am truly sorry for our unruly actions. I do hope you'll forgive me. I'll remember my manners from now on."

With his switch to a more gentleman-like attitude, I did indeed forgive the incident. Krad took the opportunity to transform back into Satoshi, who looked very tired and pained.

"You're the guy I saw walking down the sidewalk!" both Satoshi and Ayame exclaimed at once.

"Where did you go?" I asked, pulling out a chair from the dining room and seating myself in it. Satoshi and Ayame followed suit; Kyo stood against a wall, thinking of his situation from another perspective. _Another person from my world. Does this mean Tohru might come on her own? If not, could I ask for her, or does Alyssa have to?_

"Not far from here. Krad wanted to discuss a few things, and convey the message that he has power over me," Satoshi answered while rubbing his back.

"Kills to be you," Kyo remarked.

"Here, blue guy, how about I give you a massage?" Ayame asked.

"It's Satoshi. And no. I'll pass."

I looked at Satoshi with concern, but he gave a weak, reassuring grin.

* * *

When night had fallen over the house, the four of us grew tired and readied ourselves for sleep. I brought out some spare sleeping bags, pillows and blankets for the men, who took over the living room. Kyo refused to share a room with Ayame, but he found the idea of Ayame sneaking secretly into my room even more revolting, and so he put up with him. Ayame refused to sleep in the basement for the colder temperatures, being the snake that he was. The weary Sohmas seemed to hit the sack as soon as the sack was available, having been fighting boisterously since Ayame first arrived.

I switched off all the lights, washed my face, and entered my own bed. I couldn't fall asleep just yet, with so much still on my mind – this would be a repeat of last night, if I didn't get the answers I wanted. I wouldn't be able to get to sleep for the heat, either. About a half-hour after I entered my room, I got up to turn on the air conditioning for the night. When I did, I found Satoshi keeled over the dining room table bathed in a beam of moonlight from the patio door behind him.

"Satoshi?" I whispered. "You're still up?"

His head rose slowly, as he was already aware of my presence.

"Are you sure you're alright?" I asked. He looked bothered in a way.

_No,_ Satoshi thought, _because Kyo didn't take my job, so Krad just told me the specifics of his whole plan. _"Yes, I'm fine. Maybe it's the heat…this night is unusually warm. When the AC starts up, I should be able to sleep."

He still looked bothered.

"You know, Satoshi, if you're worried about something, you can always tell me." I usually found mushy-gushy-I-love-you talks to be awkward, but he looked in need of a kind word. Maybe I'd be able to wish for Krad to be a separate person if it all got too bad. Although, that have would wait until my first wish came true.

Satoshi looked up, and his reassuring smile wasn't so weak this time. "I'm fine, so don't worry. Get some much-needed sleep after a day like today."

"I guess that's an order." I smiled and returned to bed.

While I lay awake, waiting for the air to grow cooler, I thought of the day's miraculous events. Just last night, I was alone. Now, I had four anime people living in my house to stay until who-knows-when.

But the same thought had been lurking around all day: was that good enough for me? Even though my wish wasn't quite granted, here I had three others plus Krad that should make up for it…but they didn't, really. There was still a tiny empty feeling that I wouldn't be able to shake, that no one else could fill.

These people needed a chance, though, Dark or no Dark. I resolved to get closer to each and every one of them, and play the game with a different tactic: forget about Dark. If he comes, the wait will seem that much shorter. If he doesn't, I will have still had a wonderful experience meeting Kyo, Satoshi, Krad, Ayame – maybe others. Maybe I'd get to meet Dave soon.

Or maybe I'd get to meet Lena, now that her confirmation had erased all doubts of her existence from my mind.

For now, I just needed to go to sleep, and bring on the new day.


	4. It's you?

CHAPTER 4

_The thing called for me, didn't it? It wasn't fair for it to disappear on me like that! It was supposed to reside in the shadows that I had just made my way through, and I wouldn't be able to find it now, because I couldn't go back. This place was empty, and shadows were impossible._

_I looked back to find the soldiers missing, while brilliant barrenness took their place. At the sight, my heart's rhythm sped up. How could I be lost? _

_Light was before me, behind me, around me, light so sickeningly clean and painfully vivid. This world was not just bathed in light, it was made of light, and I wanted to retreat as fast as I could, or else that lonely being would be as far from me as I was from sanity here._

_Startling me, a patch of darkness intruded upon the flawless scene. I was going to get out of this prison... Running as fast as I could, I took off for the shadow, but – however much I willed to reach it – the distance never shortened. Struggling now with an overwhelming sinking feeling and a sense of limited movement, I willed my legs to go even faster, but I was still getting nowhere. Where did that shadow go? Was it even there to begin with? If it wasn't, why was I running so hard for nothing?_

"_Relax," a soothing voice whispered into my ear, no sooner than my little shadow of hope had disappeared. "Whatever was plaguing you, it's over now. I've got you."_

_I turned my head, and found it. I finally found __him__. Or, rather, he found me. _

"_It's you?" I asked, taking in the sensation of his steady breathing, his hair tickling my face. His jet-black wings shielded us both from the storm of light and became all the evidence I needed. "It is. You finally came."_

"_I've been with you the whole time," he said with a tilt of his fine face, and somehow, his hair remained in perfect, gravity-defying order. "Though if you meant here" – his hands secured their grip on my shoulders, and he brought his head in closer while keeping a peculiar distance – "I didn't keep you waiting too long, did I?"_

"_No, not at all." I turned to face him, noticing just how much space he kept between us. I walked a step closer, but then he walked a step back. "Why do you…?"_

_He was silent, as if he had realized something he didn't want me to know._

Consciousness faded in as I became aware of the brightness of my room, but I was still in the state where dream was meshed with reality. Dark had come. He was looking at me so warmly that I couldn't understand why he backed away.

I spoke aloud unconsciously. "Please, don't go…don't do this to me…come closer…!"

"Oh? My pleasure," his calm voice said.

_Now_ his arms were around me...  
His arms were actually around me? Dark was…here?

More awake now, I forced my eyes open and felt for my side. The image of the dream gave way to my real surroundings, and my senses returned. There was, indeed, an arm there that wasn't mine, attempting to caress me. This alerted me to full mental clarity: someone was there, in my bed.

Lastly, logic and common sense took over my subconscious: _What am I supposed to do?_

Before I could panic, the memories of the previous day played through my head, and all of my thoughts and expectations surfaced from the blank slate of sleep. I went completely still. Were those real memories, or part of a dream like the one I just came out of? They were so beyond possible that I questioned my sanity. Whether anime characters really came to my house yesterday, I couldn't yet be sure. Not until I rolled over.

* * *

"I have a job for you to do," Dave Irata said with a facial expression his female assistant couldn't quite interpret. Here in this place, she was only under the guise of being his assistant; the man actually had life-and-death authority over her, being more her lord than her employer. He had a penchant for odd, twisted expressions, and the one he wore now was a cross between annoyance, evil, triumph, and hesitation. She could only imagine what he was going to ask her to do.

"What is it?" she responded when her mental guesswork proved fruitless.

"I've been given permission from Lena to ask you to do this."

This caused her to ignore his expression and listen intently. When Dave saw how serious she became, he felt a thrill of victory go through him. _Cheap lies go far, _he thought, _I even have power over Lena herself. She didn't know what she was doing when she created me. This plan is entirely mine, and there's almost nothing she can do about it until Alyssa wishes me dead._

"You're to go out to _her_ residence, and bring back her _Furuba_ guests. Then…" He handed his assistant a small object. "You have a ceremony to perform."

"Ceremony?" the girl turned the object over in her hands, feeling a twinge of nostalgia and guilt. "And what if more _Furuba_ guests arrive?"

"We'll only need the two currently in existence. Trust Lena…and trust me. This will be beneficial to everyone. Grab your cloak, now, and go on. And keep Lena's words in mind - we can't go giving away our identities yet, so keep your mouth shut as much as possible."

The girl liked his expression even less, but she obeyed.

_My life in this world will be secured, _thought Irata as he moved leisurely to turn off his computer. _Mere child's play._

* * *

"Kyo," Satoshi muttered with his eyes still closed, disrupting the absolute stillness of the living room.

Kyo started visibly. "What the hell, you scared me!"

"I didn't wake you up, so how can that be?"

"I was hoping you died!" Kyo took a defensive stance where he was previously stretching and pointed furiously at Satoshi. "You ruined my happy moment, you!"

"So sorry to disappoint." Satoshi stretched his arm back over his head to the side table for his glasses, and pushed them on with a hint of a smile.

"IT'S BECAUSE OF –"

"Shhhh," Satoshi held a finger to his lips, and gestured toward the hallway.

"Oh. Right. She's still sleeping." Kyo sat down and gave Satoshi a long, hard look, letting his anger subside. "What did you want?"

Messy strands of ice-blue hair fell in Satoshi's face when he sat up. "I was thinking that, when Miss Alyssa awakens, we should go say good morning. She'll be questioning the events of yesterday, so we should prove that we're actually here before she has time to enter a panic."

"I guess you're right." Cat ears materialized on Kyo's head and twitched in tired boredom. "But it's too early in the morning for caring. Are you always thinking ahead like that?"

"It's how I am. If I can't wake up without a busy mind, I'd like to make sure that she can."

"Think about food or something!"

"I have already mentally reviewed the inventory of the kitchen and have planned out every possible combination of foods that could be deemed both palatable and culturally acceptable for the time of day. Unfortunately, I lack the skill necessary to prepare them all. When I wasn't in the mood to taste the consequences of my own cooking, I ordered take-out." His glasses gleamed brightly in the sunlight.

The hair on Kyo's head was on end by the time Satoshi had finished speaking. "No kidding. Don't cook anything. Please."

"Can you cook?"

"I…could cook a few things, but I left cooking mostly up to the…er, my…a friend, who lived where I did."

He relaxed onto the couch opposite the teenage prodigy, and his thoughts wandered to memories of Tohru making breakfast every morning. She'd be smiling her usual stupid smile, failing to realize that Shigure's compliments were suggestive or that the dang rat was plotting another creative way to use her food as a weapon against the pervert. But every day the food would just get better and better. She even made leeks taste good.

Kyo wanted to see that stupid smile of hers again, here, in the real world. Fact was, she'd get along great with Alyssa. Why, the two of them could probably cook up awesome food and serve it with stupid carefree smiles _together_. What mattered was that the chance to see Tohru was at hand, and as long as it was, he'd do anything to keep from revisiting the death that awaited him with Dark's arrival. How to tell Alyssa? She'd have to be the one to wish for Tohru, and she wasn't going to wish for anyone else until Thief-Boy came along and doomed them all.

Even so, Kyo would go to all lengths to prevent _anyone_ from winning Alyssa's heart until he got to see Tohru one more time.

A worrisome observation made by Satoshi snapped him back to the present.

"By the way, did you notice that Ayame is missing?"

Seconds later, a terrible shriek pierced through the house.

"There he is," the two muttered as they dashed through the hallway to my room as fast as their feet would take them.

* * *

"Ayame! Get off me! Why didn't you transform?" I hopped out of bed with such speed that I amazed even myself.

"I wasn't actually hugging you, that's why! Genius, right?"

"Get out of my bed!"

Ayame sat up and placed the back of his hand on his forehead, as if feeling faint. "My dear, how your bold words stab my fragile heart! Was it not you, my delicate flower, who asked me to come hold you? It was a challenging request, but I did the best that I could!"

My mind blanked for an instant. "I was still dreaming. My words were aimed at –"

Before I could finish, Kyo had stormed past me and thrown Ayame out of the room with a force that could have knocked the snake right out of him. I noticed that Satoshi was right inside the doorway, cocking his head.

"I don't know why!" I protested in reply to the implication of his gesture, feeling dazed by the sudden mayhem.

Fire itself looked at me from beneath untidy orange hair and deeply creased eyebrows. "You don't _know_? It took you until just now to realize that a pervert was in your _bed_? He was probably there all night! What's wrong with you, you idiot? Is there something going on that we need to know about?"

Without my knowing, and without each other's knowledge, Satoshi and Kyo were extremely concerned: it appeared to them that Ayame, too, was trying to achieve the very thing they were aiming to prevent.

I fell to my bed with nothing more to say, the combination of disappointment, confusion, and joy shutting my mouth up tight. Dark was only a part of a dream, and Ayame made this morning awkward beyond words, but I got to wake up to a shouting cat and a charming genius like I wanted to in the end.

When Kyo had stewed in his anger long enough, Satoshi set a hand on his shoulder, guardedly. "Wait for an explanation before you shout at our hostess next time."

"Then what happened, huh?"

Ayame crawled in the door with bandages all over and put on a pitiful display. "It got so cold last night! I had to get warm somehow, what with my cold-blooded fingers getting numb!"

_Is this because I turned up the air conditioning last night?_ I thought.

"Yeah right!" Kyo scoffed.

"No, really, they're so cold that they could fall off at any minute! Feel my skin!"

"No way!"

"But Kyonkichi!"

Ayame chased after Kyo, who withdrew his fists in fear of accidentally honoring the man's request. Soon enough, they were gone out of the room.

"So much for a 'good morning'," Satoshi said, walking further into the room. His tiny, riddling smile broke out as I abruptly fell into a laughing fit.

"You're all still here, and that makes this so much better than just a _good_ morning."

"Is that so?"

I looked down at my feet. "Yeah. I was beginning to think that yesterday was too good to be true, and that I'd find you all gone today. I'm glad, Satoshi!"

"As am I. I was able to sleep last night for the very first time, and have never felt so alive." He gazed at his hands, moving them with appreciation, until they unexpectedly clenched into fists.

_That little gift was only because you are so necessary to satisfying my own wishes right now, _Krad told him at that moment._ Tell me, when are you going to obey, dear Satoshi? Ayame's very first attempt failed, which leaves the mission to one of us. It's you or me, and I'm feeling gracious enough to let you decide._

Kyo sprinted for the solid front door, and as he opened it, he readied himself to dash forward and slam the door shut at the same time. His plan backfired, however, when he, mid-momentum, caught sight of a figure standing on the other side of it. Tripping through the threshold with surprise, Kyo ended up face-down on the steps with Ayame right behind him while the visitor scooted to the wayside.

The door shut behind them.

"Who the heck're you?" came the muffled voice of Kyo, who was miraculously unscathed.

He looked up to find a small figure in a black cloak, her face shaded by a hood. From what he could see, she was young and beautiful, but her voice was grave and serious.

"I have come to invite the two of you back to the quarters of your creator."

"Already?" Ayame asked in disbelief, "We get to see Dave so soon?"

"I don't know anything about any Dave!" Kyo protested.

"Then he'll just have to introduce himself. No worries. He won't keep you long, and he promises that you'll leave the meeting happier than you came. This is not optional for either of you."

Kyo arose to dust himself off, Ayame straightened his coat, and the girl handed each a cloak similar to her own.

By that time, I had heard their voices and made for the door with Satoshi to investigate.

"What's going on?" I tried pushing the door open, but it was somehow locked from the outside. After accepting that the door was indeed stuck, I scurried to the front window to catch a glimpse of the stranger on the front walk. The girl turned her face away before I could have a chance to see it.

"Come, we must go," she urged the men. Twisting her head to the side so that it remained concealed, she lifted her voice for me to hear through the window. "_Do not_ follow us, Alyssa. They'll be back soon enough." She walked away at a brisk pace, causing her cloak to billow softly behind her.

Satoshi watched them leave. "There's something familiar about her," he mused. "Something I cannot quite place. Her voice, it was…"

Some underlying authority in her command was enough to make me resist the urge to knock the door down.

"Satoshi, was that…Lena?"

* * *

"So, lady, what gives? How do you know who we are?"

The girl scarcely turned her head in Kyo's direction. "I work for Dave – I'm his assistant. He's a busy man, so he sends me on his errands. He wants to see both of you."

"And for what purpose might this be?" Ayame asked with increasing excitement. Kyo, wondering how Ayame recovered from his injuries so quickly, waited for the answer as well.

The girl looked back and forth to make sure that no one was following them along the edge of the road where they walked. With quick, almost nervous movements, she motioned them closer, and her whisper sent a few strands of short hair out beyond the safety of her hood.

"He's giving each of you a wish."

Kyo looked to Ayame, bemused, and then back to the girl. "What kind of person is this guy?"

Her shoulders stiffened and she fell reticent.

"Look, can we at least know your name?"

No answer.

"Sheesh! Why won't you answer me? Sometimes I like to know things!"

Kyo stomped in front of her to block her path. She instantly halted and shied her face away from his determined fury; Ayame trotted ahead of Kyo so that he could watch all the action safely.

"Look, I can't say much," the girl said as calmly as she could, obviously hiding some sort of disappointment. "All I can let you know is that I'm like you. And if you must call me something, call me…Hannah. I can't let you know my real name."

She tilted her face upward to take on Kyo. "Get a move-on. Don't make me hug you."

He slid out of her way, and they resumed walking. It would take another fifteen minutes before they reached Dave's office, which was located in a complex beyond the hilly and forested land where Alyssa resided. Contrary to the country-like feel of the residential area, the central part of town was a modern and bustling place, with some well-known companies set up there.

Along the way, while striding along in silence at the edge of a glittering pond, the two Sohmas thought carefully about what Hannah told them. Ayame already knew what he wanted to ask for, but Kyo, on the other hand, was torn between several options.

Could he somehow wish for Dark to never show up? No, he thought; that would be taking away Alyssa's one and only wish. He remembered that he, Satoshi and Ayame were completely unrelated to it. Unwanted. How selfish and pointless would it be, then, to take Dark away from her so that he could live on without a purpose? He'd let Dark appear; he just wouldn't let the two of them get close. Placing that idea aside, Kyo settled on another option and thought it through.

When they had finally made it to the complex – after several reminders to cover up their faces from the public – they cautiously followed Hannah's petite frame through the front door of what appeared to be an insurance company. Their cloaked guide opened a door in the side wall to reveal a grayish staircase, which the three of them ascended. At the top was a plain wooden door with a small brass plaque that read "Dave Irata", which Ayame looked upon in distaste. It wasn't grand enough for a savior like Dave.

Hannah lifted her hand to knock, but right before she did, the door opened. Dave stood on the other side.

"Hello, there! Please, come in. I've been expecting you two."

He greeted the men with a kind smile and led them into the room, offering them each a chair, and taking a seat in his own behind his desk. He had the blinds completely retracted behind him, allowing the mid-morning light to brighten the mood of his office, and he wore a cheery tie that made Hannah seriously consider how he could have had such a change of heart in the amount of time she was gone.

She shut the door behind her and joined them, not knowing what Dave had planned.

"So tell me, Kyo, Ayame," he nodded to each as he said their names, "did my lovely assistant tell you anything about this little meeting?"

Ayame extended his hand across the desk with delight. "Why yes, yes she did! I must first say, Mr. Dave Irata, it's a pleasure to see you again! I owe you so much, and I think I know just what you'd like!"

Dave took his hand slowly, and his features lit up with amusement while Ayame rambled on.

"You see, I only make my one-of-a-kind specialty tea for a certain few people (who aren't alive at this moment, but does that matter?), and they are the few who are dearest to my heart! Because those slots need filling in this world as well (oh, how lonely I become when I cannot share my tea) I have officially given Miss Alyssa the first slot and you the second! That is my gift to you, for being the reviver of my life, my soul, my beauty! My tea! Oh, for Kyonkichi to comprehend the glory of this moment!"

Kyo could've sworn that he heard obnoxious, fast-paced music sound from somewhere while Ayame was speaking.

"I am so very, very honored with your gift," Dave said with a soft, smooth chuckle, retracting his hand and adjusting his collar. He turned to Kyo. "Is there anything you'd like to say before we get down to business? It's only fair."

Without a moment's hesitation, he asked, "Who are you?"

"Does it matter? I'm granting you two a freebie, and that's all you need to worry about."

"Yes, it does matter!" Kyo slammed his hand on the desk.

Dave's chin was rested atop his folded hands now, and his tone was stern. "I am the one who created you."

Kyo stared in disbelief. It was what Ayame and Hannah were saying, but what happened to the female voice he heard when he awoke for the first time? He didn't dare ask the man now; he'd tell Satoshi about it later.

"One wish. I'm not up to creating more people right now, so make it pertain to your own needs." _Lena's going to kill me if I tamper that much with her authority right now._

_Oh man, I can't wish for Tohru? _Kyo thought. _Come on! This is just perfect. Well, if I can't wish for her, I have another idea. I really don't want to be a cat like this if she ever does come. Considering how clumsy she is, it's unfair for her to have to deal with me transforming all the time. It's the only other thing I could possibly want._

Ayame reasoned again with himself to make absolutely certain that his decision would be worthwhile. _Miss Alyssa is a most beautiful young maiden, and oh, how I want to capture her heart and live! Women cannot function without the touch of others, and I simply cannot be turning into a wretched snake when one Dark-less day she again requests my closer proximity! No! I vow to satisfy her deepest desires, to fulfill her unvoiced longings, with this wish!_

"Take away my Zodiac spirit!" both Sohmas asked with such resolve that they failed to see how they both said the same thing.

Dave grinned, for he knew with reasonable certainty that this would be their request. "Very well."

He gestured for Hannah and had her hold out the item that he had given her earlier. It was a small glass cube that glistened in the streaming light.

"Look into it," he instructed the boys. "This will take a while, so make yourselves comfortable."

Hannah sat herself between the two, allowing them to gaze comfortably into the glass. The things Kyo and Ayame thought in relation to their wishes played audibly in their minds, and a glowing energy seeped from them into the cube. They felt freer, more relaxed, more tranquil by the minute, as they sleepily viewed the reflections of their animal spirits appearing gradually in the cube's nearest face.

The magic put them into a deep trance, and they wouldn't wake up for hours to come.

* * *

Later, after freshening up and allowing ourselves time to think, Satoshi and I, locked in the house, shared our ideas over a bite to eat. He took up a chair across from me at the table when the food was ready.

"This place feels really empty without the other two around," I commented with a note of worry. To be separated from any one of these irregular people caused me anxiety.

"That, it does." Satoshi leaned back casually, tea in hand. "Did I hear you right when they left – was it 'Lena' you said?"

"Yes, actually. I found out that it's the name of your creator." I sipped away at my own cup of tea.

He sat forward with curiosity, as this was news to him. "And how exactly did you discover that?"

"Via computer connection – she sent me a message hours before you and Kyo arrived, telling me to expect you. When you told me about your creator, I got curious, so I asked this person outright who she was."

"What proof do you have that she is who she claims?"

"She was able to tell me everything that happened yesterday."

"Interesting." Satoshi took a stab at his rice with chopsticks. "Ayame doesn't fit the trend, though. There's another person whom we don't know anything about."

I placed my hand on my chin and frowned. "If only I could find him."

"He could very well be the one that the cloaked girl was leading the others to. Who else would do this? Our only option, with the way the house is sealed up, is to question them when they return."

As Satoshi lowered his gaze thoughtfully, I looked at him warmly, admiring his will to settle the issue. Just the fact that he shared my curiosity eased my worries – being the incredibly talented chief commander of the police force in his world, I knew he'd figure something out – and I was able to think about how much I was enjoying this time alone with him. At first, I didn't think he'd be this easy to converse with. Our personalities were more similar than I imagined.

His eyes wandered to random points during his short moment of thought; I was surprised to find them suddenly looking into my own. The light was catching his in such a way that I fell unaware of my staring at them, and he, too, remained where he was.

"It looks like things are more complicated than you want them to be. I don't know why I'm alive, but…" he glanced sidelong, then back, "as long as I am, I want to help you."

What was this, and how did it happen so suddenly? He wasn't just looking at me anymore, but gazing so gently that I didn't want him to stop. The other side of his personality was showing through, much different from the aloof, mysterious type he usually was. His family history, his own past, and the one who lived within him were contributing factors to that, but he fought past them for the time being. All I could see was the true Satoshi.

"Stay still," I said, and stretched my hand across the table, causing him to draw back slightly. Touching the corner of his glasses, I asked "May I?", and, after receiving a tentative nod, slowly took them off of him to set them down. Again, I experienced a rush of warmth come to my face. I knew that he did not need them, and he looked so good without them…

"Thank you," I smiled. He might not have been the person I wished for in the beginning, but I was grateful for his presence.

_My, my, that was so marvelously quick, _Krad said to him, and Satoshi jerked his head to the side with a shiver of disgust.

When I saw him do this, I knew Krad was up to something, for he was the only one who could make Satoshi look so tormented. I felt sorry for his sake – when he miraculously gets to experience real life, he has to do it with Krad and his full powers around? Was I the one responsible for his pain? I didn't want this for him! If he was now going to help me, I wanted to make sure that I could someday return the favor.

_It's nothing, Krad, so let it go, _Satoshi retorted. _I'm not the one she wants, and we both know it._

_Oh, you'd be surprised at how fickle the heart of a girl can be. And anyhow, you don't have a choice. For now, because things are moving along in my favor, I'll let you in on a secret: there is a magic seal on the doors of this house that looks familiar. If you let me out, I will be able to open them and track down the source for you. You must understand that you are nothing without my power, Master Satoshi. You can only help the girl with my assistance. Let me out._

Satoshi paused. It would certainly help bring in some answers, like how magic was even cast on the house in the first place – but Krad was Krad. He refused him outright.

"What is it?" I asked, setting down my tea. This was more than Satoshi returning to his icy self; he looked genuinely distraught over something.

"Alyssa, Krad senses that magic is the force locking us in. Our visitor was _that_ unwilling to let us follow her – she's definitely a special person, and could be related to either Lena or Dave. Krad is offering to track her down…but it means releasing him."

I didn't know what to say.

_No time to think this over,_ Krad said, his voice audible from Satoshi. A glow filled the room, and the terror in Satoshi's countenance grew along with it. He shot up from his chair and stood back near the patio door, pressing his hand to one eye.

"Don't come out!" he yelled above the rising volume of the surrounding magical energy. Various papers and dust swirled about in the air.

"Too late." Krad's voice emerged from Satoshi's body, signifying that the transformation had begun.

The last thing Satoshi could be heard saying was "Don't hurt her!"

The tall, angelic being was again in my presence, with his huge white wings folded at his sides. His aura gave me chills all over again.

"We meet again, miss. What a pleasure."

He folded his gloved hands behind his back and turned to examine the door. "Oh, poor Satoshi. I accidentally knocked him out. He's so weak…but do not worry, he shall recover in due time."

Upon hearing this, a protest rose in my throat but never found its way out. I didn't dare to put up a fight with someone so powerful. All I could manage to say was, "What have you found?"

"Hmm, I recognize this magic. It is similar to my own. A simple barrier has been put up, just strong enough to keep you inside."

He pulled a single feather from his gold-edged sleeve and applied it to the door. I inched closer and watched with interest as a white sphere engulfed the handle and caused the door to open. The magic didn't send off a red "impossible" flag in my head. I was beginning to grow accustomed to the impossible.

_Certainly, _Krad thought with no one to overhear, _this magic belongs to him. Why, of all people, is he alive? Heh, I do believe I must pay him a visit; it has been such a long time. Then we shall fight for the same cause once again._

One of his feet stepped through the opening, but he soon pulled it back inside.

"Come to think of it, I have a little time, so how about I stay and chat? It would be cruel to leave you here all alone."

I hesitated. "We can always chat after you've found the cloaked girl…"

"Ah, Miss Alyssa, there is no need for you feel so uncomfortable." He took three leisurely steps in my direction with a crooked smirk on his face, and I made every effort to read his movements so as to avoid any danger. I forced myself to look relaxed, and aimed to avoid his hypnotizing eyes.

He quietly laughed when he noticed me looking at his wings again. "Mesmerized, are you?"

One of them extended out halfway to lightly brush my cheek, and I stiffened up. However, it was so amazingly soft that I eventually reached out to stroke it.

"Wow," I said, in awe of the wing's size, even though it wasn't fully outstretched. "I've always wondered what wings like yours would feel like."

"Hmhmhm, how glad I am to be of service to you." Krad extended it completely, venturing to curve it around my shoulders. I tensed up again, and he grew to be thoroughly amused by this. "Are you sure about this?" his already-smooth voice softened even further. "Do you _really_ want me to go?"

"What do you mean?"

The monstrous wing around me, with unexpected strength, pulled me close to him as he lightly tucked a hand under my jaw. "Will you be alright without me? All alone, in the same solitude you endured before me? I say 'me', for I have a bigger part in your happiness than you think. Do you know that at any moment, should I will it, I can kill anyone I choose – apart from Satoshi, whom I still have complete control over? The existences of your new friends, or rather, the _answer to your problems_, depend on _my_ _mood_."

His grip tightened, and his serpent-like gaze froze me like cornered prey.

"I shall leave you to think about this," he relaxed his hand, "but in the meantime, I have something for you."

He pulled one of his special feathers out of his sleeve and offered it to me. I didn't know what to do. To refuse it felt rude, but I could just imagine Satoshi yelling at me to refrain from taking it, especially after what Krad had just said. I quickly found out that I had no choice when Krad's hands pried mine open and placed the feather into it.

"Consider it a gift. And do not fear, my dear master," his silky voice had a hint of playfulness to it, "for what good are these feathers when I am not wielding them, hm?"

I nodded, and turned the feather over in my hands. It had such a perfect shape and softness, quite unlike anything I'd ever held before. Before long, Krad had vanished out the door and took off into the sky. I watched as the glistening angel lifted high enough to appear as a bird, and then I could no longer see him. It was a relief to see him go, but at the same time, I became uneasy when it sunk in that I was completely alone. What could I do now?

* * *

Lena wasn't online.

That was funny… In the past when I had tried to contact her, she popped up the moment that her name ran through my mind. Well, it ran through my head about ten times, and she was nowhere to be found.

I hiked up the stairs with deliberate languor, knowing that I would probably have a while longer to wait before being able to see everyone again. I had already waited for several hours. There was no way of knowing when to expect their return. They could come back in a few more hours, or a few days, or not at all….

_Please, don't let it come to that!_

When I arrived on the main floor, I shuffled my feet over to the front window in the living room, imagining the three walking along the road with the late afternoon sky behind them. Maybe they were already on their way? There was nothing for me to do in the house, so I thought that I would take a walk to town to meet up with them if they were.

So, slipping on some comfortable shoes, I opened the front door and set out along the paved sidewalk. I followed it leisurely, taking in the summer air, looking around at the forests and the darkening shapes on the horizon. The heat had died down a little bit from its prior rage, and the sun took on a deeper tone of gold. A sunset would be visible in about an hour.

I couldn't remember exactly when I stopped taking in the scenery and got lost in my thoughts. Without warning, the image of Satoshi came to mind. What was he thinking about before, when he looked at me like that? Absorbed in that thought, I no longer paid attention to how each crack in the sidewalk dragged by, or how delightful the mild wind was, or how a smile was creeping onto my face.

Something felt wrong, though. My heart thudded in recognition of its betrayal – _Why are you thinking of Satoshi like this_? _What's wrong with you?_ I thought, and replaced the image of Satoshi with Dark's face. _That's more like it. I must hold out for him! Lena's real, and one of these days she'll grant my wish. Just hold on. He'll be alive soon!_

I strolled along, now preoccupied with the thought of Dark, until I came to a little pond partially surrounded by dense woods; it reflected golden light that drew me to its edge a short ways off of the path. It had been a while since I really stopped to look at it, and I had forgotten just how beautiful it was. With a seemingly infinite amount of time to kill, I sat down by its edge.

Nearby movement caught my eye, and I turned my head to see a person kneeling at the pond's edge, splashing his face with water. It struck me as odd – was the water clean enough for that? I knelt down and secretively scooped up a handful to find it quite pristine. I watched him carefully from my vantage point as he stood up, facing away from me. That was when I noted the unusual apparel he was wearing: a black trench coat, giving a shine characteristic of leather, decorated with various straps and belts and a stand-up collar that hid most of the back of his head. I was made immediately suspicious of the man. After pulling black gloves onto his hands, he laced his fingers together and stretched them skyward.

"Agh, how come I can't find her house?" he said. "This search is taking forever!"

The water I scooped up spilled noisily out of my hands and startled him. He tilted his face over his shoulder and spotted me with eyes far too large to be human.

_It's you?  
_


	5. Helpless

CHAPTER 5

So unmistakable was the man that I did not think before I spoke.

"You!" I said, a finger outstretched in his direction, failing to realize until after I had spoken that he did not yet know who I was. It would be difficult to tell him now in his spooked state; I remembered in that second that all of my guests so far were given orders to steer clear of suspecting people.

"Uh-oh!" he mumbled, but before he could taste sweet escape from what appeared to be a stealthy fan, he halted with an apprehension that made me wonder. Then I saw it: his bicycle lay in the grass nearest me, and he'd have to run my way to get it.

Opportunity!

"No, wait!" he shouted as I reached his bike before he did.

"Will do."

"Really? You're not going to chase me with it or anything?"

"Why would I, when you're clearly not going anywhere without it?"

"Well, it's happened." He lowered his steely eyes and pressed his lips together, recalling a not-so-distant memory with distaste while strands of his snow-white hair lifted up to meet the breeze. As I walked the bike back to him and offered him the handlebars, his features went blank – literally.

"You're just gonna let me go?"

"It doesn't matter in the end, because I think your destination and my house are one and the same."

With surprise, he examined me closely for the first time. "Your name wouldn't happen to be Alyssa, would it?"

My face acquired a flush of pink, partly because of the excitement of meeting him, and partly because of the embarrassment of confusing Hatsuharu Sohma for someone else from behind. "That would be me."

"Huh, that's comforting," he said, placing a hand on his stomach after both of us witnessed it growl. "I've been looking for you since yesterday morning. How did you find me out here?"

While explaining to him that I took a walk to get away from the empty house, the tale began to sound increasingly foreign to my own ears. Usually, I took walks to get away from people or to clear my mind, but this time, I wanted to be with Kyo, Ayame and Satoshi on a level I didn't comprehend. This feeling of concern to the point of restlessness was entirely new to me. At least now, my evening wouldn't be spent alone.

Haru had spent two days searching for me on orders from someone neither of us knew, but wanted to know – on the walk home, he informed me that his creator, like Ayame's, was the man named Dave. When he uttered the name, more frustration rose within me. I concluded that I had to put that matter behind me, since there wasn't much I could do for the time being but to introduce Hatsuharu to the real world.

* * *

"Here we are," Hannah spoke sharply, waking Kyo and Ayame out of their near-sleepwalking states. Ever since the ceremony, Kyo had barely spoken, being overwhelmed by thoughts of freedom. On the other hand, Ayame had chatted himself silly, wearing out his voice and subsequently, to Kyo's relief, choosing to let it rest. The serenity of summer dusk had accompanied them as they walked to my house, and they had arrived under a still darker sky. Careful to follow Dave's commands, they shed their cloaks and mentally prepared themselves for the act they would need to perform from that moment on.

"So what are you gonna do now?" Kyo asked Hannah before taking the front walk to the house.

"I'll see you later on," she answered. "For now, I'll be going back to the office. Be careful. Dave seems to be up to something."

Her cloaked fanned out as she spun around to walk the other way.

"This is absolutely _amazing_, don't you think, Kyon-kyon?"

"Hey! What'd I sa-"

"Though tough on the outside, Hannah's got a heart of gold, I think! Oh, the mystery is killing me! What ever shall the context of our next meeting with her be, I wonder? But worse yet, our princess has been without us for the whole day! Rush onward, Kyo, and save her!"

By this time, Kyo was at the front door with a finger jammed in the ear closest to Ayame while his free hand knocked on the wood. The next time he met Dave, he'd give him a not-so-nice punch to the face for bringing Ayame to life, if that is what truly happened. The man annoyed him to no end.

Mid-knock, the door opened, and Kyo jumped in surprise. "Hatsuharu?"

Ayame leaned on Kyo's shoulder and poked his head around him. "We have a newcomer? Life just keeps getting better!"

Hatsuharu, decked out in various dangling necklaces and a tank top, stood to the side to allow them in with a very monotone greeting: "Hello."

"H-hey, fancy meeting you here." Kyo, eyebrows twitching, fought the urge to make a sarcastic remark and noted mentally that one more injury needed to be dealt to Dave. He helped himself into the house, kicked off his shoes and grabbed himself some water, while Ayame skipped to the nearest mirror to smooth his hair back into beautiful, twisted perfection.

The escalating noise of footsteps could be heard.

"Haru, who is it?" I asked before rounding the corner. The sight that awaited me brought a tremendous flood of relief. "Ayame! Kyo! You're back!"

Kyo gave a quick wave while he was still gulping down water; however, swiftly kneeling to the floor, Ayame had already secured my attention by taking my hand and gazing up at me with glittering, watery eyes. "Do forgive me for deserting you! I'm a horrible person…on the inside, that is, because the outside is flawless, but you get my point, don't you?"

Before Ayame could continue on about anything too stupid, Kyo put down his glass and interjected. "Did Satoshi magically transform into Haru or what? Where is he?"

Ayame stood up, scanned the house, and praised Kyo for his good question. All attention on me now, I replied frankly that Satoshi had left hours ago, and that he hadn't said when he would return. The feather in my pocket suddenly seemed heavy, and I fingered it nervously. "Which brings me to this: who was that lady? Where did you go? What happened?"

Their eyes wandered to the floor. "We _really_ can't say."

"How-_ever_," Ayame winked and attached his hand to my shoulder, "everything will be alright! I _shall_ make up for this incident! I have a _project_ I want to work on, yes, a _project_, and it's going to involve _you_ and a _tape measure_ and beautiful _lace _and _curved lines_ and _things!_"

Ayame snatched my wrist and stampeded with me down the hall, never to be seen for the rest of the evening. When Kyo tried to imagine what he might have been planning, he shivered. "I would thank him for switching the subject, but he's…he's…"

"A mystery," Hatsuharu whispered.

"Not a mystery, a _pervert,_" Kyo retorted. "Did you hear about what he did this morning?"

"I don't think so," Haru said as he traced a circle on the wall with his finger, sifting through all the information he acquired over recent hours. "But I can easily guess."

"Tonight, we're camping out in the basement and takin' him with us. The stairs are creaky – there's no freakin' _way _he can escape without us hearing."

"But what if he transforms in the cold and slithers up the stairs?"

Kyo paused a moment before answering. "No worries. It won't happen." Then, he let out a huge yawn. "I think I'll go get some rest. You should, too. You look exhausted."

"Yeah, walking around for two days in this heat really kills."

He put the pieces together: "Hold on a sec, you've been here as long as I have? You got lost again, didn't you?"

Haru bluntly nodded.

"Idiot. You really haven't changed since back then, huh?"

* * *

Dave shut off his computer, turned off the lamp beside it, and sauntered over to one of the windows in his office. Night was creeping through the city streets, and the moon was becoming quite pronounced. Equally as pronounced was his grin: everything was going his way, and he couldn't contain himself. He had ordered Hannah to escort Kyo and Ayame home so that he could relax alone. Lena wasn't butting in to any of his business so far, and as long as she was good, he was good – and now he couldn't wait for the show to begin.

To his dismay, it would be difficult to watch the action without someone reporting it back to him. To allow Lena the freedom to tell him these things also meant giving her the freedom to demand things from him – _limit_ him – so he'd go by way of his assistant, sending her to Alyssa's house to stay. It would get her off his hands, something he'd wanted to do ever since they were created. He couldn't make any rash decisions if he was to manipulate everybody just right, but he was confident in his reasoning. He leaned his shoulder against the wall to the side of the window, gazing at an angle to the moon, mentally giving himself a pat on the back for his own work.

Luring him out of his moment, a winged silhouette appeared in front of the moon, increasing in size, and after a short time it flew directly above his window.

Alarmed, Dave shut the blinds and backed into his chair – it was certainly not a bird. Which one was he?

He waited patiently in the darkness, looking toward the office door for some sign that somebody was coming up the stairs. Nothing but his own breathing could be heard.

Jolting the silence was a tired, raspy laugh. "Haha! So it _was_ you, Master! What a surprise!"

Dave quickly flicked his lamp on and swiveled around speedily to find Krad propped up against the same spot that he himself had been leaning on before.

"How did you know I was here?" he asked, keeping a calm composure.

"I was out flying and caught sight of two familiar people leaving this building…a building I had already sensed a certain _magic_ in."

Krad's appearance astonished him: his wings were ruffled and dirty, his shoulders were stained with blood, his hair was hanging all over his face, and his voice was weary when it came out between steadying gasps for air. Seeing him in such a state, Dave rose up to stand in front of him without any fear of his powers. "What happened?"

"Oh, just a small bout between Master Satoshi and I." He coughed, resumed. "After making him unconscious once in a day, it is very difficult to repeat. His willpower is both astonishing and physically detrimental."

"Hmmm?" Dave's curiosity was aroused. "Feuding with each other again, are you? What have you to fight over when the Niwa family doesn't exist?"

"Exactly that," Krad answered. "They don't, and through any means necessary, I will not allow them to – one member in particular."

"Your thoughts are remarkably similar to the ones I experienced just this morning." He walked around a bit with his hands behind his back, keeping his gaze on the battered angel, thinking deeply through another idea. "What do you say we team up on the effort?"

A wry smile formed on Krad's dry lips. "Just like old times?"

But a sinister smile formed on Dave's. "Yes, my servant. We face our enemy yet again, and he won't win this time."

A faint chuckle followed these words.

Dave raised an eyebrow. "What?"

"It's not that simple. Tell me, 'Dave': who is Lena? What do you know about her, and will she get in our way?"

"Getting serious now, are you? I must say, I'm not surprised that you already know her name." Dave rapped on the screen of his computer. "I can't tell you much about her other than how foolish she is. She created a boulder too big for her to lift, so to speak. I control her now, through this."

"I need to know why we're here and why Dark isn't, if we're to cooperate on this. I take it she created you, too? Who is to say she does not possess the power to stop us?"

"I am." Dave looked deep into Krad's eyes with absolute amusement, an amusement far beyond the matter of Lena. "She hasn't intervened in anything _I've _done so far."

"Is that so?" Krad gripped his shoulders and winced. "Then I shall let things be, for now. It would be in my best interest to allow Satoshi some rest." He turned for the window and held a feather up to it, suppressing his own anticipation with his best effort. "Rest assured that a plan will be put into action…tonight."

With much struggle, he flew away, leaving Dave alone again in his office to think to himself. _He has a plan, as well? My, my, which of us will come out on top?_

Landing without a sound, Krad helped himself into my house, taking extra care not to wake anybody up. Step after painful step, he found my room and entered. The feather he had given me was sitting on my dresser, amidst several pins, strips of tissue paper and measuring devices laid out by Ayame.

He reached his hand toward the feather at a distance, spanning his fingers out, activating it. A golden glow ensued, and then its magic floated across the room to where I was peacefully sleeping.

_Good night, miss. Enjoy your rest._

* * *

_This pain…searing pain…_

Satoshi came to consciousness with a most unpleasant sensation. On the couch, he opened his eyelids languidly, taking into account all the soreness in his body. His neck felt stiff. His arms burned. There was a perpetual sting in his back, and he didn't dare to move his shoulders. His head throbbed. Krad had gone all out to keep him unconscious, and he could only reason that it was because something unfortunate had begun.

Aside from all of the negative sensations, there was one that stood out. It wasn't pain or burning, but agreeable warmth. Looking to observe what it was, and grimacing at the pain that ensued, he discovered that there was a person pressed up against him.

"Alyssa?" his voice came out weak and shaky. Considering that it was early in the morning – deep red-orange rays colored the ceiling of the living room – he decided against waking her up. For her own sake, he thought about moving her back into her own room, if he could. He was too tired to make sense of it.

Ignoring the pain as best he could, he willed his arms to lift her over a little ways – when he did, however, a surge of pain flowed through his shoulders, and something completely unexpected happened: a cloud of smoke appeared, and then Satoshi was no longer Satoshi.

* * *

Kyo woke up naturally early and spent his time stretching and training in the space of the basement. Hatsuharu was still passed out on the floor in a tangle of blankets and wouldn't wake up for a while; Ayame would remain in his cushy land of nod for even longer. At least they didn't snore. It was easy for Kyo to pretend that they weren't there and focus on himself.

Thoughtlessly performing rhythmic stretches, he utilized the blessed silence to think through some things. He wouldn't transform into a cat anymore, thanks to Mr. Creepy Smile and Ms. Whatserface, nor would he have to safeguard his special bracelet. The ceremony had really worked, as Hannah had proven to him, so now he could seriously consider confronting Alyssa about Tohru. If she couldn't do anything about it, he'd go to the roof and wait until he saw the first star or until the voice of that weird lady sounded again. His determination grew stronger: something told him that Dave wouldn't, or _couldn't_, honor his request, and he probably didn't have much time. In light of this, he couldn't help thinking that life could be fun if he didn't have to worry about it suddenly ending.

His ears, still possessing their catlike sensitivity, picked up a soft whisper from upstairs. Alyssa was the only one up there, so maybe she was awake. Erasing his doubt was a larger sound that followed the whisper, but he couldn't identify what it was. After he cooled down, he wandered up to investigate. The sooner he could put his plan into action, the better.

* * *

I woke up when my face slammed down into a couch cushion. Dazed, I inspected my surroundings and found only a crumpled blanket beneath me. It looked like I fell asleep on the couch, even though I clearly remembered falling asleep in my own bed. Life already showed the signs of being as odd as it had been the previous two days. Was that smoke in the living room, too? Rubbing my eyes open and finding the air clear again, I reasoned that it must have been my imagination.

To the side of my head, a small lump underneath the blanket wriggled. I froze and examined it apprehensively, looking for signs that would tell me what it was. With extremely cautious movements, I lifted the edge of the blanket back. A small white kitten with sparkling yellow-green eyes looked back at me. I didn't know where the kitten came from, who it belonged to, how it got in my house or why I was almost on top of it, but there it was, and it was adorable.

"Hello there," I said aloud, carefully stroking its head, trying to pass the situation off as normal. The kitten trembled slightly.

_Satoshi! _Krad's thoughts boomed, _What in the world is going on?_

_I don't understand! _Satoshi thought. _I have fur! A tail! Paws! And I'm being petted! What did you do, Krad?_

_I did nothing. Nothing!_

_That's hard to believe! I don't recall being part cat in our past life!_

The quivering stopped when he realized that my gentle stroking had eased some of his pain, and a purr erupted against his will.

I sat back onto my heels, bringing the kitten with me and placing it on my lap; I noted that its eyes bore uncanny resemblance to Ayame's. I continued to talk to it and stroke it, letting all of my questions get lost in its fluffiness.

_I think I get it now, _Satoshi thought._ I've acquired some kind of Sohma curse, it seems. I heard that they transform when they become weak. The bad part is, they transform back when they feel better. I can't do that to her! _

With clumsy movements, it pounced back underneath the blanket. As I lay back down to see the seemingly playful animal underneath it, I saw something that looked like denim, and then something white clouded my vision.

Satoshi abruptly appeared underneath me, so close that our noses were touching. I didn't know what to think, what to say, what to do. Those icy eyes reminded me of the previous afternoon, and before I had the chance to identify what I was feeling and correct it, my heart thumped ruthlessly. Nothing made sense. Creaks in the basement stairs made the matter worse – my mind filled up with so many thoughts and worries that it was the same as being blank.

"Hey, Alyssa, are you up?" said Kyo, about to turn into the hallway until he saw the scene in the living room.

He was mortified. _Alyssa and...__Satoshi? _Suddenly, he was staring at what he expected the least and feared the most, and it happened so fast, too! They were obviously all over each other before, because they were freaking out now that he was present, and from what he could see, Satoshi even bore a few bruises here and there. Since when was Satoshi back home, anyway? Thinking quickly, he remembered that he heard the sound of furtive footsteps in the middle of the night but was too sleepy to care. So they spent the whole night together, did they? Here he was finally going to begin the quest for Tohru, only to find that the chances of seeing her again were even slimmer than ever. _S__ome faith_ Alyssa had in Dark! She was just like any other girl. It looked like he'd have to make his move on his own, and fast, too.

My eyes followed Kyo as he stormed out the back door and hopped effortlessly onto the roof. The only choice I had was to solve one issue at a time until this awkward mess cleared up.

"Satoshi?" I asked, backing my head up and quickly removing my hands from his bare shoulders. "You're…back."

"Somehow. My apologies," he said, remaining still. I noticed the bruising on his shoulders and how one side of his forehead was deeply cut.

"What happened to you?"

"A demon is what happened. What about you? Why were you…?" As I tried to process the implication, he glanced at the couch and back up again. "You slept here last night. I tried moving you, but I transformed into…well, you saw. I have no explanations for that."

I blinked repeatedly, finding it necessary to remind myself that I was indeed awake. _Why did I do that? _I asked myself, searching for the answer. A thought too distant to be put into words surfaced, but nothing else, because I felt a minor headache coming on.

"I don't know. I fell asleep in my own bed, and I woke up here. But you – you're hurt! Are you injured anywhere else?"

"My back…" he muttered. Helping him to sit up, I walked around to examine his back. Dried blood stuck to his skin around two long scars over his shoulder blades where his wings would've sprouted. "Krad must've flown for hours yesterday to beat me up this bad. He was really pushing it – we share all the same injuries. Something was _this_ important to him. He didn't do anything to _you_, did he?"

My headache worsened at the sound of Krad's name. "No, I'm fine. I guess I'll go get Hatsuharu to come help out with your injuries, because I have an angry kitty to talk to." I started to walk across the living room.

"Hatsuharu? Who's he?"

"A relation of Kyo and Ayame's whom I found yesterday while searching for you."

When I left for the basement, Krad's laughter flooded Satoshi's mind. _You know something, _Satoshi thought._ Tell me what it is._

_That odd incident worked to our favor. Did you happen to see the look on her face this time? It was convincing enough to cause a commotion with Kyo._

_I did, and I don't understand it._

_Even if the reason is not clear, think of the result, Master Satoshi. You could claim this life for yourself and rise above her petty emotions. _

Satoshi closed his eyes and sighed.

_So that's how you truly feel? _Krad asked. _You side with Dark on the basis that he can end my life? Wrong answer. You must have poor memory – I said that there was something I would do if you refused to side with me, and I've already begun to do it._

In the process of waking Hatsuharu up in the basement, I brought my hand up to my head in the hopes of relieving a sudden, incessant pounding. Thankfully, it died down within a few minutes, but it never fully went away.

_No,_ Satoshi thought. _No. Please, don't do whatever it is you're doing! Don't torture her with magic!_

_Too late._

Satoshi's eyes popped open and widened with immeasurable worry.

* * *

"So this is the guy who went missing yesterday?" Hatsuharu asked sleepily as he stepped down into the living room.

I followed him with various first-aid supplies. "Yes. If you don't mind, I need your help getting him patched up." I could have done it on my own, but I wasn't feeling too well. It wasn't often that I experienced headaches for no apparent reason.

"It's not a problem."

We got to work on Satoshi's back. To take his focus off of the pain, he started up conversation: "So, Hatsuharu, do you transform into an animal like the other two?"

"Yeah. When we're done here, maybe I can show you."

I received a mischievous look from Hatsuharu, but I was in the middle of making the first connection of the day. _"The other two," _Satoshi had said. I remembered thinking that the kitten's eyes looked like Ayame's, and the fact that it was a kitten…It was as if Kyo and Ayame's zodiac spirits had combined onto Satoshi. The theory was too bizarre to believe.

"And we're done!" Haru later exclaimed, happy with the neat bandaging work he'd done.

_He's pretty good, _I thought.

"Thank you," Satoshi said, grateful to be able to sit up and stand with less pain. Hatsuharu motioned us to follow him, and he led us out to the back yard where the morning air had yet to obtain its full summer heat. Satoshi forced a small grin in response to my nervous laughter – we both knew what was coming.

"Now c'm'ere, you!"

With a tug of my arm, Hatsuharu drew me in for a hug. Kyo peeked over the edge of the roof with disgust when he heard us come out. _They act like nothing happened, _he thought as he watched me and Satoshi venture to pet the small ox that stood in a clearing of smoke.

"Hey, Haru," I whispered into his large ear, "Kyo should come join us. Look up - see that?"

Finding the object of note, he proceeded to yell at the tuft of orange hair that he saw on top of the house. "Hey, Kyo! Are you all rested up?"

"Sure am," he yelled back.

"Get the hell down here so we can finish our fight!"

He moved his head over the ledge. "Huh? You're a cow! I can't fight a cow!"

"Scaredy-cat!"

"I'm not scared, I'm _smart_, and you're _stupid, _you hear me?"

_Uh-oh, _I thought. _Things have gotten personal. All I wanted was for Kyo to come down so that I could explain things._

The ox's eyes turned black with fury. "LOUD AND CLEAR! But there's one thing you need to learn, and that's that I'm _not_ stupid!"

"Prove it, cow!"

"I can't until you –"

In the middle of his exclamation, Haru transformed back into a human, wearing nothing but his earrings and the one necklace that managed to fit around his temporary cow-neck. "Until you get down here!"

Kyo leapt down from the roof with a visible aura of fire. "Fine, I'll fight you, but put some clothes on, first!"

Hatsuharu scrambled for his clothes that were lying in the grass and dressed himself. "Ready now?"

"You bet!"

The first rounds of fists began to fly, followed by feet, knees, elbows, and assorted expletives.

Watching the display of strength with interest, Satoshi and I sat on the steps near the door. My head pounded again, and I drew my fingers up to my temples to help soothe the ache.

"Are you feeling alright?" Satoshi asked.

"Oh, it's nothing – it'll probably go away in a little bit."

He continued to look at me with concern, but decidedly turned his attention back to the fight. "If you say so."

An hour later, Hatsuharu collapsed onto the ground, and Kyo proudly proclaimed himself the victor right before he himself collapsed.

"Good fight," Kyo heaved.

"Kudos," Hatsuharu sighed and wiped the sweat off of his forehead.

"Have some water," I offered, kneeling down and holding out two large glasses filled to the rim to each of them. Hatsuharu gladly accepted, but I received a cold glare from Kyo. Because he looked too fatigued to escape me, I simply began to speak my mind.

"All I have to say, Kyo, is that it wasn't what you thought. I don't understand what happened either. Krad injured him yesterday while they were out, and he returned to find that he could transform into a cat. Neither of us knows why. I thought the cat was cute, so I held it close, but then he transformed back, and that's what you saw." I guessed that his anger was aimed at me looking pathetic and weak for talking so much about Dark and then suddenly changing my mind. "You can count on the fact that I'll hold out for Dark."

Though Hatsuharu fell into a pit of bewilderment, Kyo's face lit up with understanding. _That's where my animal spirit went? _he thought. _I'm sorry, Satoshi. I didn't know that it would… _"So there's nothing going on between you two?"

"Nothing at all!"

"So you've settled your intense drama?" Haru asked, even though he obviously didn't get it.

"Yeah, I guess." Pink lines appeared on Kyo's face when he stood up. "Sorry."

"Kyo? Apologizing? What has this world done to him?" Hatsuharu pondered, and we laughed when Kyo snapped back at him.

Satoshi was reminded of Krad's plans when I blatantly professed my hope for Dark, and when he looked at my smile, he could only wonder how long it would last.

* * *

Stirring carefree and relaxed, Ayame pushed the blankets that covered him aside and stretched upward. "Kyon-kyooon, good morning…?" he greeted, but the room yielded no response. He stood up to investigate the two piles of blankets on the floor and did not find anyone. Looking to the clock, he learned that it was already the afternoon. _Oops, I slept in! Hahaha! I think I may have stayed up too late planning out Alyssa's present!_

Filled with excitement, he zoomed up the stairs, skipped through the kitchen, spun into the hallway and then seized his paper of measurements from my room. _I need to go buy the fabric!_

He zoomed around the whole house, searching for me. Alas, everyone was outside acquainting themselves with one another over lemonade. Shoving the patio door aside, he announced his presence and afterward brought forth his demands.

"Alyssa, I _need_ to go out and find a fabric store so that I can finish your _thing_!"

Overcoming the stunned feeling that came around when Ayame strutted through the door without warning, I figured that he wouldn't take no for an answer. "Ok, go put your hair up in a feminine way and find some make-up in one of the bathrooms. Report back to me and I'll tell you if I can recognize you."

He dashed back inside the house without further ado.

"Come to think of it," Satoshi said, "I wouldn't mind going into town myself. I'd like to paint something, but I lack the supplies."

I was all for the idea of getting to see a painting of Satoshi's, so a quick disguise of sunglasses and one of Kyo's hooded jackets was put together. Ayame passed the "woman" test with flying colors, so soon enough, the three of us made our way to town and found the things we were looking for. The whole way home, Ayame kept his purchases hidden from me, which made me fear his project more than words could say.

Later on in the day, when Ayame had been holed up with his sewing project for a few hours already and I had finished explaining several things to a curious Haru, Satoshi ventured to the garage to find a ladder. The sunset was stunning, and he realized that it was the scene he wanted to paint, but the forest surrounding the house partially blocked his view, so he decided to climb up to the roof. An old metal ladder with rusty rungs was all that he could find, but it proved sturdy enough to get him safely to the top.

Kyo was spread out on the shingles, enjoying the weather, until he heard the clamor of the ladder and the sound of Satoshi's new leather-bound package of art supplies hitting the rooftop.

Satoshi got everything organized and then spoke up: "Kyo, I want to ask you something."

"What is it?" he responded lazily.

"What really went on yesterday?"

Reasoning that Alyssa wouldn't be able to hear from inside the house, Kyo gave him the answer. "I met Dave."

"As I predicted." Satoshi brought out his canvas and readied some brushes and tubes of paint. "Who was the girl that led you to him?"

"She told us to call her Hannah."

"Not Lena?"

"Who's that?"

"The name of our creator."

"Then she really wasn't Lena, because Dave ordered her around like a dog."

Beginning the first strokes of the painting, Satoshi asked what else had happened.

"That's what I've been meaning to tell you about, Satoshi. Dave granted each of us one request, and we both asked him to get rid of our animal spirits. It looks to me like he sent them to you somehow."

Satoshi lowered his hand from the canvas and creased his eyebrows. "So that's what that was. Why, I wonder? What is there to gain from this but twisted joy?"

"Well, he looked like a twisted kinda guy, and now we know that he is."

"What _did_ he look like?"

Kyo pointed to the top of the ladder. I had found it propped up against the house, so I climbed to the top. "Hey, guys." Whatever expressions they wore before had melted into neutrality. "Hope I'm not interrupting anything, but I've never seen my roof before."

"Not at all," Satoshi said. "By the way, I'm really starting to feel better now." He resumed dipping his brush in numerous pigments of reds and oranges and pinks, blending them with professional skill.

"May I watch you?" I gingerly worked my way across the slanted surface and sat beside the artist at work. Kyo watched from afar.

"Sure, I don't mind."

As I watched each individual stroke slide across the canvas, I lifted my head periodically to compare his work to the sky. Each time I did, however, my head throbbed more and more. It had been fine all afternoon until now.

An abrupt, merciless throb and I momentarily blacked out.

"Alyssa?" Kyo asked when my head drooped forward. Satoshi glanced over to find me falling head-first down the roof.

"_Alyssa!"_

The frantic shouts alerted me to a blurred view of the earth coming ever closer.


	6. Desire

CHAPTER 6

As I looked up, or down, or whichever direction it was, I began to process the swirling scene before me with astonishing speed. During the second in which I fell, I somehow found the time to think about the view, about what it might mean for me. I even found the time to think about the unusual migraines and how I wished I would have told somebody about them. Had I done so, this wouldn't be happening: in what seemed like the blink of an eye, I had fallen headlong over the edge of a roof, too far gone to prepare for the impact that was to follow.

Everything sailed past in a sluggish fashion until it looked as if nothing was moving at all. I never imagined that time would slow this much, but maybe that was what happened to people who knew that something most unpleasant was on its way. At last, the world flashed white, and that was it.

Right?

But the whiteness disappeared and my vision returned to the very scene I was pondering for so long. That was when it sunk in that I wasn't actually moving: the ground halted above my head, close enough to reach, harmless. Consciousness had never left me.

"Miss Alyssa!" came a distant cry, reawakening my senses and making me aware of a tight squeeze around one ankle. Realizing that I was safe, I exhaled the lungful of air that I had been holding in and reached out to touch the grass below while the panic subsided. Kyo vaulted off the roof to help ease me down to the ground, and both of us looked up at my savior wordlessly.

Hanging off of the roof by a single hand was Krad. He let go, landing and kneeling beside me in one smooth motion, bringing a brief gust of air with him.

Kyo scratched the back of his head, shifting his gaze between my pale face and Krad's. "How did_ you_ transform so fast?"

"Master Satoshi did not put up his typical resistance." He smirked at the sight of me, white, the beat of my stunned heart jolting my body, and leaned forward to more closely check my condition. "Nor should he have, with her well-being at stake."

I propped myself up onto an elbow and attempted to slow my breathing. "Krad?" I said in disbelief. The most unlikely thing Krad could ever do was go out of his way to save a person, but save a person he did.

Clearing stray strands of hair from my face with a single finger, he nodded. "What happened? Did you lose your balance?"

"I'm not quite sure. I –"

My speech was brought to a halt when I realized that any trace of throbbing or tension in my head had suddenly vanished. Even after that scare, I felt a tiny trickle of peace flow through me; even knowing that my life was in Krad's hands just moments before, and his penetrating eyes were on me now, his form hovering over mine, I felt no worry.

Shaking that thought away as best I could, I finished my response: "I haven't been feeling that great today. I think I should go rest."

"You're already starting to look better to me," Kyo observed. "Do you…uhh, need any help getting back inside the house or anything?"

"No, I'll be fine."

I brushed a few blades of grass off of my clothes and treaded up to the door. Haru, arriving on the other side, backed up to let me in. I tossed some reassurances over my shoulder on the way to my room, and once inside, stopped to reconsider what had just happened. A very faint _thud, thud _was filling up my head again, so I flopped onto my bed and rested my eyes, longing for it to end.

Outside, Krad transformed back into Satoshi. After Hatsuharu had witnessed this, standing with one-half of his body outside the door, a flurry of purple question marks clouded the air above his head.

"That was Krad, wasn't it? He looked just like she described," he called out.

"And oi, he just did something _good_," Kyo called back to him.

"Isn't he 'evil'?" Haru asked.

Kyo turned to Satoshi, hoping to find an answer. "Yeah. What gives?"

"I can only guess," Satoshi sighed, partly to Kyo and partly to himself. "In any case, all that Alyssa can do is rest, so I think I'll go finish my painting before the sun sets. Please keep an eye on her."

Kyo nodded absently as he watched Satoshi clamber up the ladder, and after a final look at the flame-colored sky, he moved toward Hatsuharu. "How come you get all those cool little question marks 'n I don't?"

"Quite the mystery, isn't it? With you being so confused all the time, you'd think-"

"Hold it right there! Just what do you base _that_ on?"

"You just proved my point."

"Did not!"

Their voices retreated into the house and disappeared with the closing of the patio door. Satoshi shifted his position until his back was more comfortable before reorganizing his brushes, but his attention was not yet returned to the sunset.

_Did you do that to her, Krad?_

_Please refrain from worrying, Master Satoshi. You shall thank me for this in the end._

_How can I thank you when you keep endangering her life?_

_What makes you think I will allow her to die? That would not only be boring, but foolish – she is the only way we'll be able to live._

_I can't let you continue on with this!_

_Is that so? Hah! Your fervor makes me laugh! You are powerless against me, so give it up! I will get my way._

Unwilling to listen anymore, Satoshi focused on finishing the final details in his painting. To him, painting was a thoughtless, effortless thing, just like breathing or walking, and his depiction of the sunset was completed in just minutes. Waiting for it to dry enough to be transported safely, he rested his chin on folded hands and watched the sun disappear into darkness.

* * *

A rough knock on my bedroom door woke me up. I had been resting for about two hours, but the dreaded pounding in my head only grew worse.

"Come in," I called, sitting up.

Kyo entered, flipped on the lights, gently kicked the door shut behind him, and stepped over to the edge of my bed. Not the type to concern himself with how others were doing, he remained awkwardly quiet, finding difficulty in formulating what to say.

"Don't worry about me," I assured him. "I only have a headache. I'll take some aspirin, and by tomorrow morning, I should be feeling fine." It was what I hoped, anyway.

"Sounds good." Feeling more comfortable, he ventured to sit on the corner of my bed. "I wanted to talk to you about something. It's been on my mind for a while."

I perked up with interest. "It can be anything, Kyo."

He paused to gather his thoughts. "I know that you wished for Dark and that somehow it started a big chain of unwanted guests. I'm not saying I know why it happened, but it's the reason I need to talk to you."

"What is it?"

"I…Tohru, I…I want to see her so bad, so I thought I'd ask you…"

Seeing the look on his face, I suddenly felt a wave of guilt. "You want _me_ to wish her into existence? After all this?"

"I have no right to, being a wish gone awry myself, right?"

"I don't know what you think I'll be able to do differently," I said, shrugging my shoulders.

"You don't have to do anything. It's all Lena. I just thought I'd start with you before I go pushing my luck."

I rested my chin in the palm of my hand while deciding what to do. "All I can do for you is talk to the first star I see," I said lightheartedly, trying to keep optimistic even though I doubted that anything would result of it.

"Anything." Kyo sprung off the bed, turned off the lights and pointed out the window. "There," he said with a gleam in his eye, directing my attention to a lonely-looking star that managed to shine despite the distant city lights. "That's the only one you can see from here."

Joining him, I saw it, too. I met his eyes, glittering with rusty hues, and received an eager nod of permission; soon after, I turned my head toward the star and closed my eyes. It was completely silent in my room, which only served to amplify my awareness of the continued throbbing in my head.

"Do you know it?" I said with a hushed voice, massaging the sides of my head.

"Know what?" he spoke softly back.

I opened my eyes. "The little rhyme that goes with wishing to stars."

"No. Can we just skip the stupid stuff?"

"Do you think it'll work that way?"

"It sure as hell should!"

"Ok, ok." With eyes closed again, I began to speak: "Lena…If you're out there, please listen. I have no idea what's going on – who you are, why you chose me, why you didn't choose…him…. Even so, I'm grateful for each one of these people, and I wouldn't trade them for anything."

Kyo was surprised by my words.

"That said, while they're here, they might as well be happy, right? I wish, for Kyo's sake, that a certain Tohru Honda could come and join him."

Smiling, I opened my eyes to the rare image of Kyo smiling slightly, too.

"Thanks," he said. He proceeded to make one last comment to the invisible: "P.S., I wish you'd make that top priority."

"What did you say about not wanting to push your luck, Kyo?" I chuckled lightly and nudged his side, but quickly brought my hands back to my head. "It hurts."

"You should sit," Kyo suggested and then left the room. When he returned with some medicine and a glass of water, Hatsuharu suddenly appeared in the doorway.

"Hey. Rest up and drink plenty of water."

"Will do, Haru."

"And let us know how you feel in the morning."

I handed the glass back to Kyo with a smile. "Thanks, guys."

Before I could lie down again, I found Hatsuharu's fist held out toward me, and so I gently bumped it with my own. Satisfied with this, he slipped away as quietly as he had come.

_No, I wouldn't trade them for anything, _I thought, and drifted back to sleep.

* * *

"_Alyssa."_

_What was that sound?_

"_Alyssa!"_

"_Who's there?"_

"_It's me, Lena. I can finally talk to you."_

"_Lena? What do you mean, finally?"_

"_It's Dave. He's messing with me. I can only come out at certain times, and whenever I do, he turns off my medium."_

"_Your medium?"_

"_It's what I need to communicate with you humans, because I can't from way out there, now, can I?"_

"_If you need a medium, what are you using right now?"_

"_The first one I ever used with you, tried and true. Your necklace."_

_I was silent as I came to understand what she said._

"_Anyway, I don't have long – I just wanted to let you know that I heard you. Both times. I've got this, just wait for me!"_

"_But I still have questions!"_

_There was no response. It looked like those questions would have to wait._

My pulse rose with such force in my head that I could no longer sleep. The red-orange rays of the early morning were so familiar now that I failed to notice them. I could see the throbbing in my own eyes, and beyond that, I saw the necklace hanging in the corner of my room with a faint glow about it.

_So she heard me after all, huh?_

When I sat up, dizziness and nausea washed over me. I closed my eyes and took deep breaths to orient myself, but it wasn't working. In fact, it was getting worse. All of the misery led to my mind being emptied of all but one thought: to find relief. It hurt so much – relief, where could I possibly find it? One foot found the floor, then the other, first shuffling, then walking. Instinct told me to keep going, to run if I had to. The hallway was quiet, washed in brilliant red light that should have brought piercing pain into my head, but it didn't. I plodded along, paying no heed to where my steps fell; inevitably, my arms collided with something by accident, but I quickly learned that it wasn't an accident after all. I had found my relief, sweet relief, at the price of losing my mind.

"Isn't it beautiful, the color of fire?" he said in a calm, deep tone that barely disturbed the silence. "Just like yesterday."

"Sure is," I said, resting my head against his chest, losing myself in his voice. I was completely uninterested in the sunrise, and he himself found it progressively more difficult to be.

"Hm, how do you feel?"

All the misery was gone, and my heart shook me in a very different way. "Better than words can say."

"Splendid." He placed one hand around my waist, and the other on the back of my head, which he then kissed the top of. "Tell me," he said, closing in on my ear, "what is it you desire the most right now?"

"You," I breathed. I lost all sense of everything around me except for him, his scent, his whisper. I loved where I was so much that I couldn't move. Thinking became impossible. Even breathing was difficult. After he said just one more word, my mind was gone and I slumped sideways, leaving Krad to support my full weight.

_Hmmm? _he thought, careful to make sure Satoshi was still asleep. _How delicate she must be to overdose on such a small amount of magic._ He scooped me up and paused, looking at my pale face. _This shall be easier than I anticipated, and certainly more entertaining…_

With a wide grin, he returned me to my room. Using the feather he found on my dresser, he created a cross shape with his arms and held them above my heart, extracting nearly half the energy that had originally seeped into my system. When he was finished, he exited to the living room and transformed back into his oblivious, sleeping host.

* * *

Satoshi carefully reached back over his head to locate his glasses on the side table, but the surge of pain he was expecting from the action didn't happen. He sat up after putting them on and rotated his shoulders, feeling for any pain. When he didn't feel anything new, he kept going, twisting his head to both sides and then his torso. Aside from the injuries left over from his bout with Krad in the sky the other day – which, thanks to Alyssa and Haru, were healing up nicely – he was perfectly fine. He even got some sleep last night, which meant that Krad hadn't tried anything new during that time.

On the surface, that seemed good, but in reality it was anything _but_ good: if Krad wasn't taking direct action by the fourth day, he had definitely set something else in motion. _So he wasn't calling my bluff yesterday. He's up to something, and yesterday's incidents are related, but how?_

_Just watch, _Krad thought in response to this.

_Will I ever be able to think in peace? _Satoshi burrowed his face in his hands. _Leave me alone._

_As you wish. _

Silence.

_Krad?_

No response.

"Really?" Satoshi thought out loud and leaned back against the couch with his eyes closed, letting his breath escape slowly, basking in the quiet. _This is the best mood Krad's ever been in. However, it's…disconcerting._

He finally stood up, ran a hand through his hair to get it out of his eyes, and looked around. Kyo wasn't there, so he examined the clock. It was reasonably early – right about now, he'd be in the basement training, and there was a chance that the others down there could be awake, too. Alyssa wouldn't be, and after what happened yesterday, shouldn't be. Satoshi felt the need to go discuss some things with them before she woke up, so he ambled over to the top of the stairwell where voices floated up from below:

"No, you gotta move your feet like this," he heard Kyo say with a calm, easy tone. "Otherwise you'll get off balance and you won't hit with full force."

"Like this?" he heard Hatsuharu ask, followed by the _woosh _of clothing and a hard smacking sound. He reasoned that the two were practicing martial arts moves together, taking advantage of the basement's coolness. Listening harder, he heard the quiet, steady hum of a sewing machine.

Satoshi knew now that they were all awake, so he started down the creaky stairs and made his presence known.

"Good morning, blue guy," Haru waved, appearing a tad disheveled and breathing hard.

Kyo, in better state than he was, said "Yeah. Hey."

Satoshi nodded slightly and greeted them. "Good morning. Making progress, I see."

"Sure are!" Haru focused on his form again and sent another fist at Kyo to demonstrate, which he almost failed to block. Kyo, the more experienced of the two, retaliated with a pin slowly enough to allow Haru to recognize and counter it. Their practice fight continued in this fashion.

The hum of the sewing machine in the corner hadn't stopped. Ayame, bundled up in a blanket to shield him from the cool air, didn't bother to look up from his project. Satoshi was tempted to investigate what he was making, but when he saw black lace hanging over the edge of the sewing table, he shook his head and decided against it.

The three of them looked happy and alive as they performed things they loved to do. Satoshi could not bring himself to feel the same way, though, despite his short vacation from Krad's mental intrusions. If things kept going the way they were going, not only would they be unable to enjoy life, but they wouldn't exist at all. The thought was depressing, but that was the way it worked.

"I need to speak with the three of you," Satoshi said with a voice raised loud enough to carry over the other noises but remain hidden from their hostess upstairs. "I can't get this whole mess of our existences off of my mind. It's been four days, and there's still so much we don't know."

"Tell me about it," Kyo said with exasperation. He nodded at Haru to signal that they were done training for the morning, then dropped to the floor and ran the back of his hand over his forehead. "Seriously, what's up with that lady?"

"Man, you mean?" Ayame's voice wafted from the corner as he temporarily set aside his sewing supplies.

"No! She was a lady, I swear!"

A dramatic sigh came from Ayame when he strolled over to the group. "Tsk, tsk, you poor creature. What man with any ounce of blood flowing through his veins cannot recognize the irresistible shape of a woman?" He felt compelled to complete his words with flamboyant gestures: making the exaggerated outline of an hourglass, placing his hand on his forehead while shaking his head, and then reaching an arm up to the heavens and spinning once around. "_His_ name is Dave, and he had a most impeccable _masculine_ form, almost as ideal as mine!"

He dropped the blanket that was wrapped around his shoulders and posed in an alluring way. As he did so, roses and sparkles materialized in the air, suffocating the others.

"I'm not talking about Dave! I'm talking about Lena! Get it right!" Kyo snatched the blanket and chucked it at Ayame's face, causing all floating objects to disappear.

"So," Hatsuharu calmed the others with his gentle voice, "two of us were created by Lena, and the other two by Dave. Lena has not shown herself to you two, but Dave was with me and Aya when we first came to be."

Satoshi voiced that this was correct, and took the opportunity to dig a little deeper. "Haru, describe what happened when you first opened your eyes in this world."

"Hmm…I was on the floor in some office, and when I woke up, Dave introduced himself as the one who brought me to life. He told me that I was here because of some girl named Alyssa, that my life wasn't secured here, and that there were others in the same situation. He didn't say who. I was ordered to go find her house. Then there was something about how more people like me were going to wake up in this world for her sake unless and until somebody comes along who can make her content. When that happens, the rest of us die, including Dave."

Satoshi was following along with the familiar story, nodding in understanding, until he heard those last two words. "_Including Dave?_"

"Mhm. He told me he'd kill me if I turned out to be that person, because he doesn't want to die. I thought that was really weird. Why would he create me if he was scared of dying because of me?"

Ayame nudged him. "Did he not tell you to keep quiet about that part like he did to me?"

"Yeah, but who cares? I didn't like him. He seemed really fake."

Given this new information, Satoshi's eyebrows hardened into a straight line and countless thoughts flew around in his head. "That means he's one of us, and he doesn't know very much about Alyssa. Kyo and I watched our own bodies being knitted together, and Lena began speaking to us before we were even in them. She told us the same general information, but included specifics about Alyssa, and never mentioned anything about being put at risk by her own set of rules."

Kyo knew something was up with Dave the whole time, so he was happy to hear Satoshi echo his thoughts. "Haru, it looks like he _is_ a fake."

"But how could he bring us to life, then?" Ayame questioned. "If Lena originally made us, wouldn't we have seen ourselves and spoken to her like you two did?"

"We won't know the answer to that unless we ask Dave personally." Not having anything else to say about that particular matter, Satoshi brought forth his other concern. "There's something else. Please don't concern Miss Alyssa with this yet, but…Krad is…he's up to something, and I thought I'd warn the three of you about it."

"Does yesterday have to do with this?" Haru inquired.

"It's highly likely. He's planning to use his power to be _that_ person – to replace Dark – so I implore you to watch her vigilantly." Even after Satoshi had said all of this, Krad didn't say a word from within.

"There's no need to worry," Ayame declared with all sincerity. "If _I_ can't win her heart, how could Krad?"

"You were too busy _sewing _something _perverted_ to get a chance to see her after Krad saved her yesterday," Kyo retorted. "As soon as he knelt beside her, she looked as good as new. It's like she's already falling for him!" Satoshi's saddened expression informed him that he had hit the mark. His temper swiftly snapped and he released a stomp of fury. "So that's his magic, huh? This _sucks!_ We're as good as dead!"

Satoshi looked him in the eye. "If that's the case, the most pressing question right now is this: would you rather die with Alyssa in Krad's care or Dark's?"

"Why does that matter? At this rate, Dark isn't even gonna show!"

"That isn't an option. He has to! If not, Krad is going to live, and I'll be forced to watch as he tears her life and even her body to pieces! I need Dark – I need him to steal my life so that Krad is no longer a danger to anyone! I can't do it myself unless I see him here with my own eyes."

He took a few deep breaths to calm down, and pointed upward as if to remind Kyo that Alyssa was still sleeping. Kyo understood this and took a breather as well.

"If it's gotta be one way or the other," Kyo spoke after a minute with lowered ears, "I'm for Dark. But don't get me wrong: if Dark does come, I'm still putting up a fight. Die all you want, I'm living as long as I can. If you'll let me, I'll fight _with_ you, Satoshi. You don't have to die, either."

"I'm with Kyon-kyon; I could not bear to go back to _that!_" whined Ayame. "Life is so beautiful!"

"Mhm, I'm not letting life slip by, either." Haru's firm resolve could be felt in the air. "I'm fighting."

Haru, Kyo and Ayame looked to each other with glittering, animated eyes, and then turned to Satoshi with kind smiles; Kyo stretched out his hand. "You with us?"

_To fight Krad until the end, _Satoshi thought, _no matter what the cost? To storm Dave and Lena by surprise, get our questions answered, and live to the fullest? To watch Alyssa smile a genuine smile when she finds out each new morning that we're not gone yet, and to die only if I must, with the knowledge that I, Satoshi Hikari, did my very best?_

_What a curious group. _

He smiled, too, and grabbed the proffered hand. "I'm in."

* * *

Today was the day. Cloaked to avoid the public eye, Hannah strolled along leisurely, inhaling deeply the fresh air. She loved the freedom from Dave's merciless control, and how she could be herself for a little while. Her mission wouldn't be difficult at all – actually, it sounded like fun. Even so, she was nervous that Kyo and Ayame would spoil her identity. She was even more nervous about Alyssa: should she be smart enough to figure out what Hannah was sent to do, they'd both be in trouble.

When she arrived in front of the house, she tossed her cloak in the bushes, fixed her hair, took a deep breath, and entered the proper mindset she'd need to pull this off. It came effortlessly. One last pause, and she walked toward the door.

* * *

Muffled shouting noises from beneath my room woke me up. I twisted around to look at the clock, which showed me that I had finally slept for a decent amount of time. All was peaceful save for the purely subconscious sensation that I was losing track of something important – a dream, perhaps?

I sat up, combing through fragile memories of the night, careful not to let my mind wander lest they vanish for good. The dream about Lena surfaced quickly and clearly, as though it were a real conversation. I could recall nothing more but a foggy memory the color of fire.

I made for the other side of my room where my sketchbook sat to open it and stare at Dark again. Lena inspired that? Maybe there was something preventing her from creating Dark – maybe Dave was limiting her more than she let on – so she gave all the other people to me as consolation? It was just one more reason to find the man.

For now, I wanted to find the others and let them know that I was feeling a little better, so I smoothed down my hair and left the room. As I figured, nobody was on the main floor, so I began to venture toward the stairs.

There came a light knock on the front door.

I stopped in my tracks and pivoted to face it, gulping nervously. I was almost certain that it was another anime-character-turned-human, and I hoped with all my heart that it was either Tohru or Dark.

I opened the door.

"Oh my gosh! I like, finally found your house!" came the high-pitched voice.

I would have never guessed that it would be _her_.

"Well? Aren't you gonna let me in?"

"Uh, why yes!" I moved my startled self aside as the girl, clad in a ruffled tube top and miniskirt, marched into the house with her manicured hands clasped behind her back. In her short, blonde hair was a headband with a tiny crown on the side; a crown of the same style adorned her belt, as well. As she walked by, a pleasant, expensive-smelling scent filled the air. She was fairly close to my age and size, but her figure was so perfect that it bordered impossible and sparked just a hint of envy, however unreasonable.

Her eyes, deep galaxies of dark gray, fluttered with excitement. And here I thought the _boys' _eyes were huge.

"Mio, what a surprise!"

"I know, right? You've gotta be Alyssa? It's flippin' sweet to meet you!" With a light laugh, she grinned happily and hugged me tight. I couldn't help but laugh along with her – things were about to get _really_ fun.

"So." She put her hand by her mouth and whispered as if telling me a secret: "I heard that you get to live with a bunch of cute boys. Lucky! Mind introducing them to me?"

"Not at all! But I'd like to ask you something first: you were told about the others? By whom?"

"Oh, that was Dave, he's practically my daddy! He created me, like, this morning, and gave me the whole scoop, including the basics of your gorgeous men," she said with a wink and nudged me.

By that time, those "gorgeous men" had already come up the stairs to investigate the voices. The only one who did not recognize her was Hatsuharu – Satoshi, Kyo and Ayame stopped still the moment they caught a glimpse of her face.

_That's Hannah! _Kyo and Ayame thought. _We've got to act like we've never seen her before as long as Alyssa's around._

"Satoshi!" Mio ran toward him with outstretched arms. His expression morphed into one of panic: if she hugged him, he would transform.

"What is this?" Ayame took a stand in front of Satoshi to protect him. "Do not waste your affections on naïve little boys! Pile them all on me, a real, experienced man who goes by the name of Ayame Sohma! My dearest flower," he knelt before her and kissed her hand, "pray tell, what is your name?"

_Nice act,_ Mio thought. She briefly turned her blushing face toward me and silently formed the word "Wow!" with her lips before returning her attention to Ayame. "It's Mio Hio."

"Ah, Miss Hio! Now, may I have the honor of your embrace?"

"Like, why not?"

_He's asking for it,_ I thought, and waited for the cloud of smoke to appear the moment they touched. However, they hugged fully, and Ayame didn't transform. I was so confused, but I wasn't given the opportunity to make sense of what had happened before she moved on to the others.

"Hey there, what's your name, orangey?" She subtly batted her eyelashes and studied his figure as discretely as possible.

Kyo suppressed all the negative things he wanted to say right then, such as "What the hell are you doing, Hannah?", "Put on some more clothes!", "Stop looking at me like that, creeper!" and "I can tell you what my name _isn't_!" Instead, he answered simply with "Kyo. Kyo Sohma."

"You're a Sohma too? Are you two, like, brothers?"

Kyo shivered at the thought and pouted, ashamed to share a surname with Ayame. "No, we're…cousins. All three of us are."

Much to his annoyance, she hugged him, too. He didn't transform, either. Was my bizarre theory actually correct?

"One more!" she announced and stepped right up to Hatsuharu, whose glinting necklaces, piercings, and unique hair color caught her eye. "Totally rad style!" she praised him and winked. "Who might you be?"

"Hatsuharu Sohma."

"Mmm, I'm diggin' that na-ame!" Mio sang out and went to hug him. He ducked and crawled near Satoshi. "Playing hard to get, are we?"

"No, I just –"

But she was already coming for him, so he flew out the patio door and let her hug him once they were outside. He didn't want to damage the house with his weight when he transformed into an ox.

"How. Cool. Is. This?" Mio shouted with joy and climbed onto his back. I witnessed large blue sweat-drops form on the heads of those who remained in the house as we watched Haru attempt to kick the clingy girl off of his back.

Soon enough, Ayame's smile grew so wide that it actually went beyond the edges of his face; I could tell he was in a state of bliss after getting to hug a girl. "I'm gonna get her to model the _thing_ I'm making so that it can be _perfect!_" he said with excitement, hopping up and down.

I slipped behind the two Sohmas as they faced the patio door and placed my hands on their shoulders. "Explain."

Ayame stopped hopping; Kyo gulped and tried to buy some time. "Explain what?"

I wrapped my arms around him from behind just long enough to get my point across. "This. Why won't you two tell me what went on that day?"

"Because there are consequences," he sighed at last. Cat-ears had formed on his head and flattened down. "That's all I can say."

"It's Dave, isn't it? He's putting pressure on all of you, isn't he?"

They did not answer me, and now I felt a small headache coming on. Whether it was related to my previous headaches or caused by thinking too hard, I couldn't be sure.

"Can you at least tell us where he is?" asked Satoshi.

They shook their heads dismally, and the atmosphere deadened.

Mio, successfully ejected from Hatsuharu's back, had face-planted into the ground; when she wiped the dirt off of her face, she looked up to find the four of us staring at her through the glass, lost in thought. "Why the sad faces?"

She crossed her eyes and stuck her tongue out, causing me to smile, Satoshi to raise an eyebrow, Kyo to bring his palm to his face and Ayame to mimic the same look in return. Then, without warning, Hatsuharu transformed back into a human – but this time, the boys rushed out to save _him_ instead of the girl.

* * *

As expected, the remainder of the day revolved around Mio. When evening began to roll around, Ayame retreated with her into the basement, Haru tagged along to keep an eye on them, Kyo escaped to the roof to catch a break, and Satoshi and I flopped onto separate couches in the living room to relax. She was quite the handful.

"Hey, Satoshi?" I said without moving a muscle. "Did you finish your painting yesterday?"

"Why yes, I did." He located the covered canvas by the wall and brought it over to me, uncovering it.

I took it into my hands and gasped in amazement. The painting was perfect, absolutely perfect. For a minute, I thought I saw a pair of tiny black wings in the sky right beside the sun. As soon as I blinked my eyes to get a better look, I realized that they were never there to begin with.

"It's stunning," I breathed. "You're amazing."

"In all honesty, I don't deserve the credit. I was designed this way, to be a spectacular artist – I didn't have to work at it, like a human would. Give your compliments to the sunset, not me."

I looked out the front window and saw that the sky was again the color of fire. Right before I could joke around by complimenting the sunset as Satoshi instructed, intense pain shot through my head coupled with heavy pounding. There was something about that sky that I couldn't place.

"Are you all right?" Satoshi asked when he saw me wince.

"It's my head again. It'll go away in a little bit. Maybe I'll take a walk, get some fresh air."

"Would you mind if I joined you? It's been a long day."

"Not at all!"

"You go ahead if you want, and I'll catch up in a minute. I want to put the painting away, where curious Mios won't find it."

I nodded, slipped on some shoes, and left out the front door. The sweltering heat had cooled off substantially and a light breeze rustled the treetops; the beginning drones of insects and cricket chirps completed the symphony that was summer. Sauntering along, I tried my best to focus on every agreeable sensation, but the throbbing of my head kept escalating.

* * *

Once Satoshi had found a better home for the canvas, Krad spoke up for the first time since that morning. _This is moment I've been waiting for. You're moving aside._

Feeling Krad's power welling up within him, Satoshi knelt down and leaned his shoulder against a nearby wall. _So you've finally returned. Whatever your plan is, you demon, I won't let you do it. I will not move._

_Then I shall make you! _

Satoshi grasped his head and sank even lower, now experiencing so much pain that he couldn't make a sound. The scars on his back tore open with agonizing slowness, and his throat burned as if he were being strangled. Despite the pain, he was still going to fight.

_I will not move!_

To his astonishment, a stream of pure energy, glowing an intense white, flowed out of Alyssa's room and consumed him entirely. Every single nerve was on fire. It lifted him about a foot and strangled his airways, which was all it took to render him unconscious. The last thing he thought before his body fell limp was _How?_

Krad's gifted feather proved to be a most timely trump card. He landed softly on his own feet and dusted himself off, glad to be in his own form once again. It was time; his magic had officially taken root in the girl. At the thought, he felt a shiver of exhilaration run down his spine: shortly, this world would be his for the taking.

* * *

Mio, dressed in Ayame's half-finished creation, spun around slowly to let him analyze the newest modification he had made. A certain pressure rained down upon Mio's shoulders that she knew could only be magic from elsewhere in the house, so she ceased rotating and inconspicuously held her breath. The others seemed totally oblivious to the sensation, which she could understand. Still, she needed to investigate as per Dave's request.

"Hey, I'll BRB in a sec," she told Ayame and Haru, removing the fabric pieces to reveal her normal clothes underneath. "Bathroom."

She arrived at the top of the stairs and snuck through the kitchen, feeling for where the magic was coming from. Without a doubt, it was Krad's. There were some remnants of his magic down the hallway, but she could feel a heavily concentrated amount by the front door. When she opened it, her instinct told her that he had just exited through it moments ago and was a short ways ahead. So, she crept outside, snatched her cloak from the bushes and hid in a hedge while she put it on; then she tiptoed over to another hedge; then she raced along the forest, camouflaging with the shadows, until she finally located Krad.

* * *

The sound of a distant door opening and shutting reached my ears, so I turned around to wait for Satoshi, but I didn't see him anywhere. Confused, I brought my hands to my temples and scanned the area. Eventually, I closed my eyes for the pain.

All of a sudden, the pain vanished. I raised my head, blinking curiously.

"What seems to be the matter? You look pained," spoke Krad from behind me. I didn't move. This was Krad – I should've felt alarm, but something akin to comfort took its place. Was something wrong with me?

"There's nothing wrong, I feel fine," I informed him, battling myself internally. "But if you don't mind, I'd like to continue my walk alone."

"Is that so? I shall leave you be, then."

I continued forward for a minute or two while he strode in the other direction. _Well that was easy,_ I thought. However, my headache gradually returned, and wordless thoughts of Krad intruded upon my mind with increasing frequency. My feet slowed to a halt. A tiny, foreign voice overpowered the voice of reason: _Relief. You shooed it away, you idiot. There he goes. Say something.  
_

"Hey…wait," I called out, and he stopped walking. _What are you doing? __Come to your senses!_ I scolded myself to the side. He just stood there, facing away from me, as if expecting something. One of my feet took a shaky step toward him, then the other, and soon I was walking at a brisk pace. The whole while, I didn't know what to think. For some reason that I could not consciously identify, walking toward him felt like the right thing to do.

As I arrived closer to him, the pain went away, and with it, logic. This relief felt so good! I wanted him even closer. My legs picked up the pace. I wanted him to say something. To breathe my name. My thoughts wandered shamelessly to the safety of his arms, the serenity of his wings, the pleasure of his lips…the color of fire. I could no longer resist the intruding voice.

I couldn't take it anymore and started sprinting at full speed. When I was but a few feet away, he held his arms out for me and embraced me tightly when I collided with him. The rush that I felt at that moment was so unspeakably pleasurable that I failed to notice him take off with me into the air – he set out for a more secluded location, careful to fly low so that Kyo wouldn't spot him from the roof.

Mio ran as fast as she could to keep up.

"Finally, I have you," Krad smirked maliciously in the faint light of dusk, setting me down in a small clearing and then pulling me close by the waist. I couldn't physically get any closer to him, but I wanted more – no, I _needed_ more. Enjoying every second of his cruel magic, he obeyed the tug of my hands and we toppled over to the grass, where a bed of glowing white feathers cushioned our fall.

_No, _Mio stared with incredulity from her vantage point in the trees. _He wouldn't! _

Her cell phone vibrated, and when she reached for it, she gasped at the shocking sight: her hands were becoming transparent. Elsewhere, the others were experiencing the same phenomenon.

"Hello?" she answered with a quivering, hushed voice.

"Mio!" Dave's stern voice rang out. "Mio, what's happening? I told you that you were to report _everything_ to me! I'm disappearing! What's going on?"

"I am too! Sir, it's _Krad_," she whispered rapidly. "He's got her in his grip, and she likes it there."

"What?" he shouted. Mio covered the phone with one of her invisible hands to stifle the sound. "That imbecile took matters into his own hands! What happened to our agreement? He...!"

When Dave fell speechless, fragments of Krad's smooth whispers floated her way on the breeze.

…_To reach out gladly,  
_

_With that sweet pain…_

_I spread over you the wings I tore away,_

_And lie down with you._

_Now, for the being who is so precious,_

_Let me wear my cross;_

_I should set you free,_

_This overflowing desire,_

_Then, for the first time,_

_The chimes of blessing resound…_

_Ah, beautiful…_

"We're done for. Goodbye." Dave hung up his phone in the darkness and waited patiently for the end.


	7. The Darkness of Heart

CHAPTER 7

_This can't be it!_

Mio suddenly lost her balance and fell to the forest floor. She observed with horror that her legs were not only becoming transparent, but were gradually disappearing altogether from the bottom up. Even so, she struggled to get a better view of Alyssa and Krad in the clearing, wincing as twigs and pine needles dug into her bare knees. Maybe she couldn't physically stop him, but she also refused to welcome her death with open arms. The only option left was to watch them hopefully, waiting for an opening, as her life disappeared with the last of the day's light.

Several of Krad's white feathers shot from his hands to the ground in the shape of a circle, glowing intensely upon impact. Within this circular region, he pinned the girl down with her arms straight out to her sides and stretched his wings upwards, amassing energy, chanting something Mio couldn't quite catch. A brutally heavy pressure abruptly weighed down on everything in that clearing, including her. The earth protested with violent convulsions. It had begun.

With a grunt of effort, he brought his wings down with immense force, creating a minor shockwave that Mio had to shield herself from with her invisible arms. At that moment, the entire circle emitted a soft golden light that illuminated the two figures; as it grew blindingly bright and swallowed them up, the girl arched her head backwards with a rising cry of agony. Little specks of red danced within the light, growing in numbers.

Mio lowered her gaze, allowing a tear that had welled up to trickle down her face. _If Krad's power is uncomfortably painful even at this distance…_she shuddered at the thought of what Alyssa was experiencing right then. Why did it have to happen this way? This was all needless, the game of a sinister angel who wasn't ever a part of the agenda. His magic was a terrifying thing, and even more terrifying was the fact that it was only going to get worse – yet somehow, that bone-chilling cry morphed into a laughing fit of pure ecstasy that demanded more. To Krad's ears, it was the theme song of paradise.

Mio's legs had vanished all the way up to the middle of her thighs by then. In order to retain her view, she battled the magic's pressure and dragged herself out of the forest with her arms; surely, they'd be so absorbed in the macabre ritual that they wouldn't notice her. There had to be _something_ she could do.

* * *

_So bright…_Satoshi thought as he came to consciousness. Small batches of memories came to him here and there until he finally processed the scene ahead of him through Krad's eyes. All at once, everything hit him and began to make sense. To believe he didn't catch it the moment it started…

One of the things he learned on the force back in his own realm was to not let emotion cloud his judgment. He had failed this time: he thoroughly suppressed the thought of Krad ever being heartless enough to do something so inconceivable on his watch, and so he never took the proper precautions. Nevertheless, it was playing out right before his eyes – the girl who had so innocently wished to a star one night, who had smiled for him and welcomed him so warmly, was being dealt blow after merciless blow. As he so feared, Krad's intent was to kill her as soon as his goal was completed. Furthermore, with his twisted magic flowing through her, it'd be effortless.

In other words, she was as good as dead already.

A wave of anxiety washed over him, threatening to consume him, but then he remembered something important. _What about the pact? _he thought, recalling the resolve of the Sohmas. _You can't give up. Fight. As long as she's still alive, as long as you're still alive… _

_KRAD!_

Shouting at the top of his lungs, he rattled Krad's mind with all the volume he could muster. The action outside never stopped; Krad didn't even flinch. _Excellent. _ There was a way, after all. That demon was so caught up in this decisive moment, enjoying it to such a great extent that he had let his guard down.

Satoshi pressed his fingers into the floor of the mental "room" that he occupied within Krad and began to draw a complex pattern. Even knowing that a whole new world of hurt was about to open up, he finished it with extraordinary efficiency and stumbled to the middle without second thought. Immediately, a band of light reached up to restrict his right arm by lacerating it all the way around. His heart raced. Would he make it in time?

He watched through Krad's eyes as another storm of light, so sickeningly clean and painfully vivid, tore through her. Unbeknownst to Krad, his own energized euphoria only served to strengthen Satoshi's restraints.

_Come on. Come on!_

More bands cut into Satoshi until, at last, one of them looped around his neck.

Krad's movements ceased. "_What is this?_" he shrieked hysterically, shuddering, choking a little bit. With his focus interrupted now, he became aware of sharp sensations all over his body. Those, he could care less about – but he couldn't _breathe, _and this was not good. He was so close!

_Hang in there, _Satoshi thought to himself, bombarded with so many sensations of pain that he couldn't feel anything anymore. _It's working. We'll both be dead soon._

_What's going on? _Mio wondered when the pressure lessened and the pillar of light gave way to darkness. Allowing her eyes to adjust, she saw the dim form of Krad collapse on top of his victim and shakily try to rise up again. Two scarred arms, now released from his grip, wrapped around his neck and pulled him back down. How the girl could still move after all that, Mio didn't know.

At this point, Mio's torso was half missing and she was still disappearing.

_You! _Krad thought, gasping for air. _How dare you try to stop me, Master Satoshi! Don't you get it? You and I, we are about to live!  
_

Through sheer willpower, Krad commanded the strangling bands of light to be removed from his precious tamer. The sting persisted, but he could finally breathe again. Satoshi fought back with his own mental power: taking advantage of Krad's moment of weakness, he gained partial control of his arms and ordered the feathers in the ground to disintegrate, thereby deactivating the circle and preventing Krad from creating another.

Mio thought frantically about what to do. It dawned on her that Satoshi was working from within to stop Krad, and that he needed a boost. _That's right!_ She inhaled sharply, feeling in her pocket for the glass cube that possessed a special power. This would mean the end of her, but if she didn't do it, it would mean the end for countless others. Taking the little cube in her hands, she awkwardly held it out toward Krad while she lay on her chest and focused her mind on what she needed to do. The cube absorbed her and shot her straight through Krad's head to Satoshi within.

She materialized in the mental room with a full body that was clothed in pure white.

Satoshi stared, wide-eyed. _How did you…?_

_Please, let me help you,_ she winked at him with tears streaming freely down her face. The sight of him, covered in blood from head to toe from fighting so strongly to protect someone's life, it moved her. She had seen enough suffering in that short amount of time to last her a lifetime. _It's the least I can do. You've been through so much. Plus, I totally think she's a keeper, don't you agree?_

She smiled and knelt down beside Satoshi, shattering into a cloud of glitter that healed up his wounds as it fell around him. His strength was renewed, and a surge of energy pulsed through him.

_Thank you._

Using this rush of strength, he took control of Krad's limbs, one by one. Krad's second mistake was expending so much energy without considering the possibility of disruption; his resistance wouldn't be as strong as it could be. Mustering up a huge amount of force, Satoshi overpowered Krad and forced him to transform.

_How? _Krad's voice faded into the background.

Satoshi fell to the grass in his own body, but he couldn't rest yet. He had to get up, to move despite the pain, and end this.

* * *

He was gone. My relief and my savior, he wasn't there anymore. Paradise, it left so suddenly. I needed it back. The blue-haired boy stole it from me. He was going to pay.

_Thud…Thud…Thud…_

"Give him back!" I whipped around fiercely and tried to shout the words, but they came out as a broken screech. It was all I could do. I wanted to grab him by the neck and demand he return Krad to me, but it sunk in that my damaged limbs could no longer move. My lungs took quick, shallow breaths that burned as if the air were made of fire. Something - no, everything - was broken. My mouth tasted like metal. Every cell in my body ignited with pain, and every beat of my heart felt like one gunshot after another. Krad was nowhere to be found. The pain was absolutely horrible, and only he could save me, but he was…he was…

"Alyssa!" Satoshi reached out to catch me as I passed out, and subsequently transformed into a little white kitten. He had forgotten all about that – now he was useless! Puddles of red pooled up around me, staining his fur; he had to retrieve the others as fast as he possibly could in order to save me.

When he dove into the forest, a tiny distant sparkle caught his eye. Turning to investigate, he found a small glass cube with a beautiful stone in the middle that still gave a faint glow. He knew exactly what it was: a Hikari artwork passed down through his ancestors.

This could only mean one thing.

However, he'd deal with that later. For now, he bent down to pick it up in his teeth and scurried back over to me, setting it beside my body. Mio was smart enough to keep a fraction of her life force in that cube: a cloud of glitter drifted from it and healed up all of my injuries. By laying down her life, she had saved the two of us from certain death, albeit temporarily.

Satoshi heaved a sigh of relief. She'd be safe now, sleeping peacefully in the forest. Krad's magic was still running through her veins, though; that feather in her room needed to be destroyed at once, and he had to find a way to take care of Krad permanently. Only then could everyone have peace of mind.

The kitten escaped into the woods to begin the long run home.

* * *

Dave stirred from his position on the floor of his office. Having disappeared from the waist down, he had toppled over to the carpet and, in anticipation of the end, had allowed his mind to fade to sleep. _Shouldn't it be over by now?_

What woke him up was returned sensation in his torso, legs and feet. By twitching and flexing all of those muscles and joints, he verified that they had indeed fully returned. He lifted his head up to take a look, and also found that they were visible again. However difficult it was to believe, something had stopped Krad.

_Krad, that monster!_ They had a mutual agreement to work _together_ on this! By default, it meant that plotting to win the girl's heart was out of the question. Granted that she was just a _girl_, he figured that he should probably avoid slaughtering everybody, too.

_It was as simple as causing enough chaos to keep any one person from getting too close to her. Instead, he went ahead and tried to take the prize for himself! _His fist met the floor with a soft thud. _It is evident now that I cannot trust him. In that case, if he is now my enemy…I will kill him._

This was suddenly a more serious matter than playing games with little girls. He couldn't rely on using Mio anymore – the time had come for direct action, no matter what Lena decided to do to him for it. Without it, his death was guaranteed. Thankfully, he had prepared for this moment.

Dave shrugged out of his suit jacket and blindly flung it into a far corner. Loosening his tie along the way, he dashed out the door and leapt down the stairs two at a time. There was no way of knowing how much or how little time he had before he'd start disappearing again, so he had to find the girl, but not without care. It was equally important to locate Krad and devise a sturdy plan, should they cross paths.

When he slid into his sleek, black Lexus, he tugged his tie off and fumbled at the top button of his shirt to allow himself full range of movement; then, he unclipped his keys from his belt and dug around in his pants pocket for the one object he always kept on his person. It was the most valuable work of art he owned: a hand-crafted, intricately carved crystal pocket watch on a silver chain that was decorated with various precious stones. Within it was a small mirror that reacted to magic, and the multiple hands of the watch indicated not only the time, but the general direction of magic vessels and the exact locations of any magical works of art that had come into contact with it. Right then, it told him that there were three locations within a certain radius that housed magic vessels, and the one that held the most was in the direction of the girl's house, as expected. However, one of his magic objects was located in a forgotten forest a good distance away, and there was a magic vessel that had begun to move away from it. This stroked his curiosity, and he decided to scout that area first.

He started the car in motion and reached for his cell phone after he had left the parking lot. A voice picked up on the other end: "Hello-o?"

"Ayame, I presume? It's Dave."

Ayame gasped in surprise and double-checked the caller-ID on the home phone. The number was listed as private.

"Mr. Irata!" As soon as he said the name, Kyo and Hatsuharu huddled around him. "What a pleasure to speak to you again! Say, did it happen to you, too? I'm so glad that my precious legs are back, as well as m-"

"I don't have time for chit-chatting. Give it to her. The box."

"But I am afraid to say, my good sir, that she has gone missing."

He wasn't surprised. "Is that so?"

"Yes – in fact, Satoshi and Mio went missing along with her. We just got our bodies back a few minutes ago and were about to go out searching for them."

"I see. I'll leave you to that, then. If you ever do find her, make sure you give her the box. That is all. Farewell."

When he snapped his cell phone shut, he found himself having to slow to a stop at an intersection with a short line of cars ahead of him. He tapped his fingers on the wheel impatiently, sighed, and then sensed somebody in the car beside him looking his way. Dave observed that in the passenger seat of the vehicle was a pretty brunette woman, illuminated gently by the street lights – she was close to his age, around late-twenties, and giving him an interested look. Using the arm that was already hanging out of her open window, she waved at him playfully and then discreetly nudged her female friend in the driver's seat to take a look at him, too. That one raised her eyebrows and allowed her jaw to hang open a little bit.

_Ah, I almost forgot, _Dave mused, pushing his glasses up and facing straight forward again. He purposefully narrowed his eyes to make them appear more human. _Your features are remarkably different from ordinary men in this world. Be careful. It could make for unwanted attention._

A flash of white in his peripheral vision caused him to look over again. The girl had written her phone number on a piece of paper and was holding it out to him, waiting for him to roll down his window and take it. The light was still red, so he did.

"Hey there, what's your name?" she inquired with a wink.

"Dave," he replied, glancing to the light and back.

She bit her lip excitedly when she heard his voice. "Well, Dave, my name is Sam, and –"

"And I'm Jessica!" her friend quickly called out from the driver's seat, causing the girls to giggle.

The light turned green, and the cars ahead of them inched forward. "And I would _love_ to hook up sometime," the first one continued. She gestured with her hand for him to call her as he drove off, leaving them behind in their turn lane.

A light chuckle sounded throughout his car. _I guess a few contacts can't hurt. _

He continued on to his destination, passing through the town and finally finding himself on the empty roads of a heavily forested area. There, he switched on his brights and stepped on the gas. Consulting his pocket watch again after a few minutes, he followed it until he arrived as close to the most distant magic vessel as he could. He parked the car off to the side of the road and dodged through the trees, watch in hand.

Eventually, he stumbled upon a dark clearing that was devoid of almost any natural debris common to the rest of the woods. For some reason, large piles of twigs, leaves, pine needles, and even fresh branches were heaped around the very edges, making the area look as though a storm had passed through. In the middle of the clearing, moonlight blanketed a figure that lay on the ground as well as the spatters of dark liquid surrounding it.

* * *

"Alright, guys, let's go find her!" Kyo threw his fist up high and exited the house with the others into the night.

"Where do you suppose we start looking?" Ayame asked.

"Uhh..." He scratched his head with a nervous laugh. "Beats me."

"How about the three of us split up and meet here at a certain time, Kyonkichi?"

"Wouldja stop with the nicknames already?"

A large drop of sweat adorned Hatsuharu's head. "If we're splitting up, it should only be two ways, not three."

"Oh yeah. Cowboy here's gonna get lost again." It didn't take Kyo very long to decide upon whom Haru would tag along with. "How about you two search down that way, and I'll head up this way? We meet back here in two hours. Oh, n' make sure you don't get seen by anybody. Sound good?"

They both nodded and started on their way. Ayame and Kyo, though free from their animal spirits, still possessed the sensitive eyes of the snake and the cat respectively; as such, they were just fine navigating in the dark. Haru, however, was left entirely at the mercy of Ayame and the occasional street light.

Kyo ventured along the sidewalk that bordered the same forest my house did, keeping an eye out for any signs of my passing. Several minutes and a house or two later, he found the pond that I had met Haru at, now a smooth sheet of glass that reflected the quarter moon perfectly. He scanned the area thoroughly, but found nothing of interest, so he kept following the path. There were only trees along this particular stretch; he could afford running without missing very much.

It felt so good to run, to feel that familiar rush of warmth through the limbs that he had witnessed disappear from underneath him just a short while ago. Thinking about that scary brush with death, he took a moment to inhale deeply, feel the warm night air kiss his face as he ran, and appreciate being alive. His focus returned in full and he resumed searching as he went along.

After about ten minutes, he spotted some small animal running full speed in his direction. He swerved to the side, giving the animal space to run around him, but it swerved in the same manner and continued leaping his way.

_What is that thing and what does it want with me? _Kyo thought, slowing down and putting up his guard. The animal, now resembling a calico kitten, slowed also as it neared him. If Kyo's animal spirit was gone, why would cats still be following him around?

"Kyo," it choked, startling him. The kitten gasped for breath, looking ready to collapse at any moment. "Its…me. Sato…"

He bent down to pick it up. The animal, mostly white, had familiar snake-like eyes and an abnormally long tail. "Satoshi?"

"Give me…a minute…"

The little ball of fur curled up in one of his elbows, trembling and wheezing with exhaustion. Kyo realized that the spots of color were actually crusty splotches of brownish-red. "Hey, you're not hurt, are you?" he asked without expecting an immediate answer. While waiting for Satoshi to catch his breath, he decided to sit on the ground and catch his own while checking him for injuries. Fortunately, he seemed alright.

"I'm not hurt," the kitten finally squeaked. "That's Alyssa's, but she's…she's safe now, as long as you keep an eye on me. It was Krad's doing. And Mio is…gone."

Kyo was shocked. What in the world had happened?

Satoshi was weakening fast, and his voice lowered to a whisper. "Head home. Destroy the feather. I'm begging you."

"What feather?"

"It's…in her room…"

He fell silent and rested the full weight of his small head down on Kyo's arm.

_He's out. I guess I'd better head home, then. Once he's feeling better, he'll be able to tell us where she is. Still, blood? I sure hope everything's alright._

Because Kyo would not run with Satoshi in such a fragile condition, the return trip took much more time. Despite this, the others still wouldn't be meeting up in front of the house for a while longer. When he walked in the door, he carefully set Satoshi down on a couch and then made for my room, where indeed there was a white feather; he obediently mutilated it by crushing it in his hands and bending it in all directions. Soon enough, it dissolved into thin air. Having nothing more to do while he waited for the appointed time to meet with Haru and Ayame again, he took Satoshi to a sink and cleaned off all of the blood, then returned him to the couch. As he covered the weak form with a blanket, he felt an ounce of pity – whatever had gone down, he wanted to make sure it never happened again.

* * *

Dave stepped over to the figure in the clearing. Supposedly, one of his artworks was in the immediate area, but he didn't see it. At this point, he didn't much care. Who was that person?

He bent down, touched some of the liquid, sniffed it, and shriveled his nose in disgust. Fearing that the person may not even be alive anymore, he pulled the body away from the pools of blood and rolled it over to feel the neck for a pulse. When he found one, strong and steady, he relaxed and paid more attention to the person's features. She matched up perfectly with the description Lena had given him of Alyssa.

_So, Krad is responsible for all the damage, _he thought, trying to imagine what had occurred in that clearing. _How is she still alive? _He gave a her quick once-over for the injuries responsible for that much blood, but soon found himself bewildered – she looked fine, at least on the outside. How could this be? That wasn't_ Krad's_ blood, was it?

When he moved his head in just the right way, he saw something sparkle on the ground in the spot where he had first found the girl. Alas, it was his little glass cube, the Purging Faces, that he had trouble locating before. He had given it to Mio as tool to cause mass chaos when he had sent her over, so she must have been present here somewhere along the line.

Kneeling upright, he flipped his cell phone open and dialed her number. When he held the phone up to his ear, an obnoxious pop song simultaneously filled the air. He followed the sound until he found her cell phone atop a pile of broken twigs and freshly disturbed dirt. Yes, she had once been here, but she was gone now.

Dave frowned and returned to Alyssa. _I won't know what happened until she wakes up. As for now, she's coming with me._

He stuffed his cell phone, the pocket watch, and the Purging Faces into his pockets, and then picked the girl up. It would be a bit of a chore to squeeze through the trees while carrying her, but he knew he could manage.

* * *

"_Alyssa," a voice called. _

_This time, I recognized it. _"_Is that you, Lena?"_

_I was in a room so black that I could not tell where the boundaries were, but I didn't care. I felt at ease, at home, well-rested, pain-free. By that point, I was so sick of light that I welcomed this darkness. _

_Right when I was about to move in search of her, she appeared. For the very first time, I got to see her face, which was the very definition of beautiful. Her lavender eyes shimmered softly; her skin was a cool shade of light chocolate, and looked smooth as silk; wavy tresses of silver hair fell gracefully about her petite face, which was smiling brightly. Her flowing, silver dress bared her shoulders and wrapped around her figure in a sophisticated way, even though she didn't seem much older than I was. As I stared, her bare feet carried her my way and she laid a kind hand on my face._

"_H-how?" I stuttered. _

"_I have an excellent medium to work with right now, that's how. I thought I would take the opportunity to talk to you for a little bit, girl."_

_At last, the moment had come. "Where do I begin?"_

_The response began with a giggle. "Why not the beginning?"_

_So many questions swirled around in my mind that it was difficult to pick one. "Why are all these things happening to me?"_

"_I was so excited to have somebody wish to me, silly! Only a few of the stars out there contain spirits like me. My older, brighter sisters have received tons of wishes, but you were the first to find me. Not only that, but I saw ahead of time that you were going to wish for something so very unusual that I couldn't resist contacting you before you contacted me."_

_After seeing all the things that I had seen over the past few days, I didn't have any trouble believing her. "And why…why have all of these people come instead of Dark?"_

_She paused to gather her thoughts. "There are multiple reasons. Firstly, my father always taught me and my sisters that no matter how small or big a wish is, balance must be maintained. As an example, if a child wishes for a bunch of ice cream, somebody must be placed in the child's life who will nag him about brushing his teeth and exercising. In order to give you extraordinary happiness, I must give you extraordinary conflict. I do hope you understand this. Also, on a separate note, we spirits like to help you humans verify that you really want what you're wishing for."_

_I was completely fascinated by this. As she poured the answers out, I became thirsty for more and instantly blurted out another question. "And Dave? Who's he?"_

"_A little test subject of mine, whom you shall figure out in due time." She patted the top of my head and then shook her own. "I gave him a considerable amount of power on purpose."_

"_But he's threatening the others with it! It bothers me! I don't –"_

_A delicate finger landed on my lips. "Listen to yourself," she grinned. "Before this all started, you could've cared less about people. Now, you feel for them - you feel a genuine desire to help them."_

_It was true. When did that happen? _

"_So are you sure you want Dark and Dark only?" she asked with a serious tone. _

_My face lit up. "What do you mean? Of course I do!"_

"_Even if it meant trading the others in?"_

_I froze. Thoughts of Satoshi's eyes, Kyo's fits of fury, Ayame's boisterous laugh, Haru's gentle smile, and Mio's funny faces went through my head. Life wouldn't be complete without all of them. But Dark..  
_

_Lena winked. "Mhm, I see you're starting to figure it out." She backed up a couple steps and bowed her head. "It's time for me to go now. I have one last thing to say: stay strong!"_

_Silver light engulfed her and stole her away, leaving me alone in the blackness. I stretched my hand out toward the place where she once stood, thinking it was empty space, but my hand encountered something soft there. I couldn't see what it was, but it felt like feathers. They were all around me, and then two strong arms pulled me close, and my head was against his chest. I could hear his heart beating faster and faster._

"_Even in a night so dark you can't see your own fingers," he whispered, "I will find you."_

* * *

Unexpectedly, as Dave slipped around the last of the trees, the girl he was carrying tossed her arms around his neck and mumbled "thank you." He stopped moving temporarily – was she awake?

"Alyssa?" he whispered cautiously. Having her asleep made everything easier, so he didn't want to wake her up. Fortunately for him, she didn't respond.

He used the tip of his shoe to open a rear car door and then climbed in partially to ease her down into the back seat. Sweet satisfaction descended on him when he shut the door: with her in his possession, he wouldn't have to worry about dying anytime soon. It was a most excellent position to be in.

Once he started the car, he took another look at his pocket watch. All vessels of magic were located at Alyssa's house now, meaning he could return to his office safely, except for one little thing: it wouldn't be long before the others began to suspect him and came straight for it. There must be some place where he could go to be safe from Krad...

When he was close to solidifying a good plan of action, a very unmistakable voice began to speak in the car. "Dave – drop her off by the pond, and then return to your office immediately. We're going to make somebody else."

All of his plans would have to wait. _Drat, she's using the Faces. _"Lena? Do you want me to get myself killed by going back to my office?"

"You don't really have a choice, do you? Obey me or not, there's a chance you'll wind up dead either way."

He sighed in defeat and did as she ordered, kissing his new hope goodbye.

* * *

I woke up, finding myself on a soft carpet of grass next to a familiar, moonlit pond. What happened? What time was it? How did I end up here? And why was I covered in blood?

I didn't feel any severe pain that would explain the amount of blood all over me, but I did feel minor pain in the form of extremely sore muscles. My legs gave out when I attempted to stand up, and I tumbled back down to the grass, light-headed. I had never before experienced anything quite like it, and it became evident that getting home would be a bit difficult in this condition.

But just how did I end up here? I ran through my recent memories, and aside from meeting Lena, all I could remember was something about the sunset and something about Krad. That's right, he had tried to join me on my walk, but I did distinctly remember him walking away. I couldn't remember anything after that. The answer to my question would have to wait.

It was useless – after three tries, I couldn't get up. The weather was lovely, though, so maybe sleeping outside wouldn't be that bad. It seemed to be my only option.

"Alyssa? Need some help?"

My eyes popped open to find somebody leaning over me; after straining them in the dark to see who it was, they welled up with joy. The person happily tugged me to my feet and offered me a shoulder to lean on while we headed home.

Kyo's sensitive ears detected voices outside. It was about the time that Haru and Ayame would be returning, so he left his perch by Satoshi's side and waited in front of the house. As predicted, two shadowy outlines appeared in the distance. They seemed a bit too short to be the other Sohmas, though. Thinking that they could be just normal people out for a late-night walk, Kyo stealthily retreated to the shadows and waited for them to come closer to the street light.

So they weren't his fellow Sohmas, after all. They were girls, and one was helping the other to walk.

Hold it. One of them looked like Alyssa.

But the other one didn't look like Mio. Actually, she looked a lot like…

He found himself sprinting so fast that he defied the very fabric of time and space.

"What is that?" she questioned when a blurred figure started running toward us with alarming speed. I had a pretty good guess. Just a few feet away from where we stood, he slowed to a halt and fell victim to a flurry of pink lines.

"Tohru, it's…"

"Kyo? Is it really…?"

They looked at each other silently, beaming with joy, until Tohru said "I can't believe it!"

Kyo couldn't believe it, either. For the first time, he smiled a huge smile – then he turned to me and bowed deeply in the Japanese way to offer up his gratitude. With his eyes on the ground, he noticed a drop or two of something dark red splatter on sidewalk and followed them to their source. It dawned on him that my shirt wasn't at all red earlier on that day, and he gasped deeply.

"Are you two all right? What happened?"

Tohru flexed her free arm. "I'm just fine! I found her only a few minutes ago."

"Again, thank you so much," I told her, and then answered Kyo's question. "I don't even know what happened. But relax, I'm not hurt, I'm only a little sore!"

"Whudda ya _mean_ you don't know?" His hair stood on end as he pointed at my clothes. "How can you _not_ _know_ where all that blood came from?"

"I seriously don't know! My only guess is that Krad tried to do something…he's the last person I remember seeing."

Kyo ran his fingers thoughtfully through his hair, smoothing it back down. "Yeah, that must've been it. Satoshi's been resting in the house, and he looks pretty beat up."

Tohru twisted her head back and forth between me and Kyo with a question mark above her head. "Satoshi? Krad?"

"Forget about it." He shook his head as if to empty it of negative thoughts. "I'm just glad you're both alright. Shall we?"

We were walking up the front walk to the house when his hair rose on end again. A clamorous call echoed from the distance: "Kyonkichi! Any luck?"

"Keep walking," he hissed under his breath.

"But Kyo, that sounded like –"

But he had already shoved us through the front door and plastered himself against the inside to keep it shut. Tohru and I covered our mouths and attempted to stifle our laughter when Ayame firmly demanded entry from the other side, only to be met with equally firm denial.

"So Aya is here, too?" she asked in-between lively shouts.

"Yes, and Hatsuharu, as well."

"Wow! I imagine there's never a dull moment around here."

"You've got that right…"

Ayame and Haru finally stormed through the door, flattening Kyo like a pancake. They flew straight toward us and catapulted forth questions of concern, but they were soon as glad as Kyo to hear that we were doing fine.

Ayame then took off for the stairs and paused before descending. "Alyssa, get plenty of rest so that you feel great when you receive your presents tomorrow! I shall be in the basement, furiously working away at _two _'things', now that Tohru is here!"

Kyo shivered uncontrollably. "Just what are these 'things'?"

"Wait and see, Kyon-kyon! You'll love them!"

And then he was gone.

Feeling increasingly exhausted, I put an even greater burden on Tohru, who was still trying to keep me standing. "Yes, you should get some rest," she said. "Here, I'll help you get cleaned up."

Kyo released a yawn, and then remembered Satoshi who was still passed out on the couch. He had told Kyo to keep an eye on him for Alyssa's safety, and if her injuries were the result of Krad, it made perfect sense. He would not take the mission lightly. After explaining the details surrounding Satoshi's words to Haru, Kyo discussed his plan, and they both agreed to take shifts watching over and caring for Satoshi through the night. It was imperative that he return to full strength, and they would do whatever they could to help.

"Aww, he's so cute!"

Tohru waltzed into the living room to where Kyo and Haru were and crouched beside the transformed Satoshi.

Haru decided to have a little fun. "What do you think he looks like?"

She brought her finger to her lips while thinking, and then a lightbulb above her head blinked on. "A kitten!"

Kyo planted his face in his palm, and Haru continued speaking with a sweat-drop moving down the side of his face. "Yes, and?"

"He looks…a little bit like Kyo when he's transformed."

"Mhm, that's correct."

Tohru tilted her head. "Which means...?"

"It means," two arms wrapped around Tohru's waist, "that I can hug you all I want."

She turned bright red; Haru leaned his head toward one shoulder, admiring the sweet moment. "A mystery, huh? Y'know, I'm sorta jealous."

"K-K-Kyo, you're not transforming?"

"Nope. My curse – as well as Ayame's – went to Satoshi, here. All because of a stupid guy named Dave. Do you know him?"

The two moved to sit on the couch together as Tohru gave her response. "Why yes! He brought me here. He's not very talkative, but I'd say he's pretty nice!"

Confusion spread across Kyo's features. _Satoshi and I, are we the only ones to have spoken with Lena? Does she even exist anymore? I'm starting to doubt it._

"So he told you about our temporary condition, then?"

She nodded gravely. "What do we do?"

"It starts with helping him," he pointed toward Satoshi, and then briefly explained Krad and how he may have been responsible for Alyssa's current state.

Tohru gently stroked the kitten's head, feeling endless sadness for him. _I can't begin to understand how hard that must be, but I want to do whatever I can to help! _"For now, all we can do is let them rest. I really look forward to meeting him in the morning!"

_There's that stupid smile, _Kyo thought. _Man, I've missed it._

"Well," Tohru got up after a minute, "I'm off to bed. I'll be sleeping in Alyssa's room, just in case she needs anything during the night. Goodnight, Kyo, Haru!"

"Yeah, see you in the morning," Haru said.

Kyo didn't want to let her go with the same old answer. He got up, grabbed her wrist, and tugged her close for a good-night kiss.

"Should I leave those two alone?" joked Haru, but they weren't listening.

As Kyo watched Tohru retreat with mindless bliss from the living room, he started to feel a little guilty. _Why did that wish for Tohru come true before the wish for Dark did - why am I allowed to be happy before Alyssa is? And why does she have to suffer so much on our behalf when she didn't even want us to begin with? It doesn't seem very fair._

_Lena – if that is really your name – you're messed up._

"Ok, lover-boy, get some sleep. I'll watch Satoshi till about three, and then I'll wake you up. Hey, you listening?"

"Huh? Yeah, I'm listening."

* * *

"And guess what, I finished it!"

Satoshi heard Ayame's loud declarations, as well as assorted clanking noises, and was relieved to wake up to an ordinary morning. He was back in his human form, and feeling much better. Inspecting some unusual sensations, he found that somebody had taken the time to patch him up and put some ice on his back. Moving was still painful, though, but it was nothing new.

When he sat up, he met the brilliant eyes of a brown-haired girl in the next room who then organized a tray of things and happily sprung to his side.

"Good morning, Satoshi! I made you breakfast so you can get strong right away!"

Satoshi rubbed his eyes. "_Risa?_"

She blinked. "No, my name is Tohru Honda. Do I look like somebody you know?"

He chuckled softly to himself. "You really do. Do you come from the land of _Furuba_, as well?"

Kyo marched in, wiping away his sick-of-Ayame face. "Yup, she's with me. So, how are you feeling?"

"As good as I'm ever going to feel, I suppose." Sudden panic struck him. "He didn't…he didn't come out when I was asleep, did he?"

"Nope," Kyo said in unison with Haru, who was standing in the kitchen with a mouthful of food.

All Satoshi did was sigh gratefully, because even talking was exhausting. The scenery around him had begun to swirl and his head felt hot; he struggled to steady himself. Krad had brought him dangerously close to his breaking point, and he was certainly now feeling the effects.

"Here, eat something," Tohru said while placing the delicious-smelling tray of freshly cooked food and tea on Satoshi's lap. The food looked very different from what he was accustomed to, and he didn't usually eat breakfast anyway, but this was a case where the energy was necessary.

"It's delicious," he announced with wide eyes, delighting the cook.

Ayame skipped along with rivers of tears streaming down his face. "Isn't it?"

"Shut up and eat, you," Kyo retorted.

Alone in the kitchen, Haru heard sounds coming from the hallway that the others failed to hear. He arranged a tray in the same way he saw Tohru arrange Satoshi's, and carried it with him down the hallway to my room.

* * *

I woke up and carefully stretched myself out, wary of the fact that I still wasn't totally better yet. Although, I wasn't in as much pain as I thought I would be – I could move and walk without too much difficulty.

"Good morning."

Haru was at my door with a tray of amazing food.

"Good morning! Whoa, did you make that?"

"No, Tohru did. It's awesome – even Satoshi loves it. Here, take it."

"Satoshi?"

I took the tray with me, set it down on the table, and scurried with Haru trailing behind me to the living room where I heard several voices.

"Hey, she's up!"

"How are you, Princess?"

"Did you sleep well?"

I ignored them all and pushed my way straight to the blue-haired one beyond, who was covered in bandages and scars. I just stood there, not knowing what to say, and no matter how hard I tried to hold them back, tears welled up in my eyes. They welled up in his, too. None of the others in the room knew quite what to do, so they awkwardly hushed themselves.

I dared to ask Satoshi the big question: "What_ happened_?"

He gritted his teeth and allowed his hair to hide his eyes. "He tried to kill you, and almost succeeded. But, Mio…she gave her life to save us."

Everyone was blown away by this news, including myself. I almost died? _Mio…_

Haru raised his hand to interject. "I don't get it - why'd we all get affected if Krad was trying to kill her?"

"What is that all about?" I asked. There seemed to be so much I didn't know.

"Er..." Haru realized that he probably shouldn't tell me. "I mean, uh...you know what, never mind."

"That's the power of his magic," Satoshi stated gravely.

"Magic?"

"Yes, Alyssa, he found a way to secretly use it on you to make you desire firstly him, and then your own death. The headaches - I see now that they were the precursor to the full infection_, _which is essentially what it was. The demon almost succeeded in killing us all."

More awkward silence._  
_

"But you're all alive, right?" said Tohru, filling in the dense quiet and trying to bring the once-cheery morning back to its former state. "Maybe something really frightening happened, but you can't let it get you down. You made it through – you're all ok! My mom always said that every new day is a brand new chance to act!"

"Oh, Tohru!" Ayame zoomed in for a hug, but Kyo slapped him down.

"Hands off, pervert!"

Ayame spontaneously thought of something only partially related to that last insult. "Oh, wait!"

He ran away and ran back with two boxes. "This one," he presented the bigger one, "you shall model for us later! I'll put it in your room, okay?"

Kyo and Hatsuharu tried to snatch it away and failed.

The other box was the small one from Dave that Ayame had arrived with, and he handed me that one. "Go ahead and open it. Dave gave me the OK."

With everyone but Satoshi crowding around me, I opened the box to find the most beautiful ring I had ever seen. It looked like it was made of silver and crystal, and the band was intricately carved; the stone atop it was a refreshingly blue color that reminded me of water, and glimmered in much the same way. Naturally, I had to try it on.

Once Satoshi had figured out what it was, it was too late – the ring that had started out a little too big rapidly shrunk to fit my finger and began to flicker with light. _Oh no, Dave's gonna try his hand at this game, too – and while she's still recovering! _Panicking, he pushed aside the pain and stumbled over to my side, hoping desperately that he could force the ring off of my hand. To his astonishment, it slid off with ease; the force he had prepared to use caused his hand to fling away so fast that he almost dropped it.

"What is it?" I asked as he scrutinized the stone. He wouldn't have done something so rash without a reason.

"This," he informed everyone while holding it up, "is a Hikari artwork passed down through generations, and is part of a pair collectively known as the Reflections of Regret. I am certain that Dave has the other half, which is capable of controlling this one from a distance. Theoretically, it should have done something to you the moment you put it on, but…"

Shrugging, I stated that I didn't feel anything different. It made me nervous to think about how Krad wasn't the only one out to get me anymore, but Dave, too? I had to be extremely careful from here on out, and definitely heed Lena's words: _"Stay strong!"_

Alerting us all, a piercing white light emerged from the hallway. Even rows of black shadows signaled that it was coming from behind the slats of the closet door. We followed Satoshi as he dug around for the source underneath a pile of towels, where his painting surfaced – now that the ring was so close to it, we witnessed visible slivers of energy being sucked into the painting before they could reach the ring.

_Could it be? My painting is acting as a barrier? _

* * *

_Wonderful! _Dave thought when he felt a particular heaviness about the watch that remained in his pocket. _Ayame, you have served me well. _

He pulled out the pocket watch and flipped it open. The mirror inside gave off a radiant light, signaling that the two works of art – two parts of a set – were complete and synchronized, awaiting instruction. He brought the mirror close to his lips and whispered: _You don't need them. You don't need Krad, you don't need Dark, you don't need anybody. All you need is me. Me. Empty your mind of everyone but me._

This was it. His first and more reasonable plan was effective enough, but this one would be downright fun. A smirk of amusement crept onto his face._  
_

Without warning, the watch stopped glowing.

_What? How did she remove it without tearing a finger off? _

He paced around for a few minutes, unsure of what to do. The watch didn't locate any new magic vessels that could've interfered. Then again...maybe there was something it wasn't picking up on.

As he walked to the door with an idea in mind, a white card on the carpet in front it caught his attention. Curious, he picked it up and found a fancifully-written note.

The script alone was enough to make him drop it again, scrap all of his other ideas and run out the door.

"_Tonight at 7:00 PM, I am coming to steal the Reflections of Regret._

_- Dark"_


	8. Warnings

CHAPTER 8  
(Major Fruits Basket spoiler alert.)

Everyone gathered around Satoshi in the hallway with wonder as his painting finished absorbing the lethal stream of magic. Having known a lot about Satoshi even before getting to know him personally, I wasn't totally clueless about what had just taken place. The others, however, had no clue what to make of it.

_So that's what it is, _Satoshi thought while studying his painting intensely. _Art receives its power through the thoughts, intentions, and emotions of both creator and viewer. The things I thought while painting this unconsciously infused in it a barrier magic that is serving to protect her. If only I had created it sooner, we could have avoided…_

"Here." He handed the painting to me with a mysterious calmness that I didn't understand right away. "If you hang this up somewhere, its magic will help shield you from further attacks. Unfortunately, while it may slow Krad and Dave down, there is no guarantee that it will stop them completely."

I looked down at the artwork in my hands and released a grateful sigh. As well as easing my mind of fear, its beauty continued to astound me: warm beads of light swirled about the picture, bringing the vivid sunset therein to life. I knew then that I wanted to hang it up in my room where I would visit it frequently.

"It's so pretty!" Tohru exclaimed with genuine appreciation. "Satoshi painted this? You're really good!"

After profusely agreeing with her, I thanked Satoshi.

"There is no need to thank me. Consider it a proper apology," he replied, leaning much of his weight onto the nearest wall.

"An apology for what?"

The ice in his voice chilled us all. "Existing."

He parted the Sohmas and began to shuffle his way back to the living room, but I would not let him go just yet. "No. You have no reason to apologize!"

His feet stopped moving.

"You, and even Krad, are here for a purpose – I'm absolutely positive. I may be worried right now, but don't think for one minute that I don't want you here!" Even fearing for my life was better than that mind-numbing monotony I was previously drowning in. In addition, if Krad was serving to be as difficult as he was, then in accordance with Lena's words, my original wish was that much closer to being granted.

Satoshi's shoulders visibly tensed. "How can you say that after what he did to you? After what I _failed_ to do?"

"Because Lena is real, and she's got it all under control."

Kyo's ears perked up, and he voiced the question that was on everyone's minds: "How do _you_ know?"

"I spoke with her shortly before Tohru found me last night. I even _saw_ her, guys! Though we may not understand immediately, she knows what she's doing. Believe in her!"

Everyone was surprised by my words, but soon firm nods were sent around. Satoshi turned around with renewed interest. _Finally, something about Lena._

"What did she say?" Haru asked. "Did she tell you anything about Dave?"

"Yes. I gathered that she actually created him – that, when it comes to this creator business, he's a fake."

They all glanced at each other, searching tentatively for mutual agreement on some matter. The inevitable decision could wait no longer: Dave's secrets were leaking out. At this stage, the consequences didn't matter anymore, and with this new confidence in Lena, they mattered even less. Indeed, it was time to break free of his hold.

"Actually," Haru sheepishly admitted, "we've known this for a while."

"What?" I tilted my head to the side and waited for somebody to say something. "Why didn't you tell me?"

Ayame brought his hands up in a shrug, appearing uncharacteristically serious. "Haru and I felt a particular loyalty to him, whom we thought to be our creator. When he told us that the penalty for revealing him to you was death, we took him seriously. But now, we're beginning to doubt that he is what he claims."

Kyo added more to the growing revelations. "I guess you should know, he's the one Aya and I went to see that day. He told me that he would kill me if I said anything, too. Heck, it's all out now, so who cares? Let's go hunt him down. Right now."

_Why is Dave so bent on keeping himself secret? _I thought.

"No," Satoshi told Kyo, gently tossing the sparkling ring in one hand.

"What do you mean?"

He paused meaningfully and ceased the tossing. "I know who he is – and, let me tell you, his real name is _not_ Dave. He is using an alias."

All eyes were on him now.

"It's obvious to me now: _my _knowledge of him is exactly what he was trying to avoid. You see, I'm quite familiar with how he works; for instance, I know that he will have planned ahead, and unless we want to find ourselves in a death trap, we need to tread carefully. He is well aware that I am capable of thwarting him with minimal information. After all, he is the only 'father' I've ever known. It was only a theory of mine until I saw the Hikari artworks show up in this world that he had expressed interest in before."

"_Mister Hiwatari?_" I asked incredulously. "Of all people…"

"So that's where he got his creepy factor from," Kyo muttered to himself. "So…uh, what do we do? You know him better than any of us."

"I'd say that our retaliation begins with a warning. Miss Alyssa, would you care to do the honors?"

Victory briefly flashed across Satoshi's face when he placed the ring, half of the Reflections of Regret, in my hand, and motioned toward the painting that I held in the other. "Drop it in," he instructed.

I did as he said. The painting rippled like water as it swallowed the ring up, never to be seen again. Then, I excused myself to go hang it up – the sooner the better – and Tohru tagged along to help straighten it out.

"Does that kind of stuff happen all the time in your world?" Haru asked when just the boys were left in a group.

"With artworks created by the Hikari bloodline, yes."

Kyo casually leaned on the wall across from Satoshi with his arms folded. "Your world is _really_ weird."

"But where I'm from, animals don't talk," came the smart remark.

"So where does Dark fit into all that, again?"

"He steals –"

At the sound of Dark's name, Satoshi felt the boiling pulse of the one within him begin to rise. He had to find a way to take care of him and fast, but his body was too weak to fight or to escape fast enough. The burn in his chest forced him to his knees – transforming had become inescapable. All he could do was tell the others to go. "It's Krad. Take her. Run!"

No sooner than I had heard Satoshi's cry, I found the Sohmas storming into my room. Haru shoved the window open and said "Go!"

When I was halfway outside, a sudden idea hit me and I withdrew back into my room. "No, wait!"

"'_Wait_'? It's Krad! Go, now!"

I scurried to the corner of my room and snatched my necklace. Shoving urgently past Kyo and Ayame, I ran out to Satoshi, fully expecting him to be Krad already; however, the transformation was taking much longer than expected, probably due to his weak condition, and supplied me some time. I knelt in front of him and slipped the necklace over his head, hoping with all of my heart that this would work.

"Lena!"

The necklace began to glow, and Satoshi was able to breathe easy again. Within his mind, Krad found himself bound by chains with links as thick as his wrists, and the shadowy figure of a woman stood before him. _Wait for it, love, _she said with amusement.

Realizing that Lena had listened to me from within the medium, I took the opportunity to make a bold move. "I wish that Satoshi could be freed from these plagues – that Krad and the animal spirits would be separated from him!"

Without delay, the outline of translucent wings sprung up in the air behind Satoshi and, gradually, Krad materialized there.

_Oh no! I didn't think he'd be released out in the open like this!_

"Hah! Why thank you, mademoiselle!" He swooped down with grace to one knee and reached a hand out to stroke my face, but I defensively grabbed his wrist and pushed it to the side. This, he observed with great joy: "This sensation is my own…this body is entirely my own, and it's all thanks to you, my sweet. All _for_ you. As for my dear tamer," he smirked in Satoshi's direction, "this means goodbye."

_What were you thinking, Alyssa? Now everyone's going to die!_

Satoshi stood up to take him on, but then a terrible stench in the air offended our nostrils and brought him back down to the floor. It was unbelievably suffocating, as if every inch of the house was crawling with death. Krad, somehow unaffected, tightly folded his wings and revealed to us the horror that stood beyond.

There, hunched over to avoid colliding with the ceiling, stood the deformed reptilian monster responsible for the sickly-sweet odor: the true form of the cat spirit. Its remarkably long, muscled limbs and sleek torso revealed that it possessed frightening power and speed. As if that sight wasn't panic-inducing enough, there hung a massive white snake around its neck, coiled loosely, that forked its tongue toward us. Satoshi and I backed up instinctively, struck by intense fear. Maybe Satoshi was used to seeing monsters, but my heart raced with impossible speed and a cold sweat formed on my skin as I took in those deadly claws and the color of decay. _What have I done?_

Now, three pairs of golden serpent eyes pierced through us instead of one.

With a deafening crash, the creature swept the contents of the dining room to the side in one swift stroke, mutilating the furniture and shattering the glass door. It took one threatening step, and then another, until it was side by side with Krad. The snake's head – nearly as large as my own – sailed smoothly over his shoulder while it bared its fangs and hissed a wild warning. Menace was as thick in the air as the stench was.

To top it all off, Krad brought forth a white feather that began to absorb energy from the surrounding environment; as the pressure of his magic weighed down on us, I could only imagine what the actual impact would feel like. Brief images of some similar memory flickered in my mind, but my panic was too great to allow me to focus on them.

Satoshi's clammy hand felt around for mine in a futile attempt to provide consolation. Though it wouldn't do anything to help the situation, he stammered the word "sorry."

Yes, that wish was definitely a mistake, and I was sorry, too.

By then, something had caused the three monsters to mercifully peel their inhuman eyes away, freeing us. At first, I didn't dare to take my own eyes off of them, but then I saw a shadow on the edge of my vision. I fought the urge to gag on the repulsive air and took the deepest breath I could manage. It was Lena, and she was giving me a thumbs-up.

"You," Krad growled, and shot the ball of energy at her. She effortlessly caught it in the palm of her bare hand.

"That's no way to treat your creator," she said, forming her perfect lips into a pout. Before Krad knew it, his own magic had blasted his left shoulder, causing his sleeve to burn up and blood to trickle down to the floor.

Krad grunted with surprise. "_Creator?_"

When I looked back to the fearsome beings, they were wrapped up tight by enormous chains that were pulling them toward my room. During the time that I had looked away, the true form of the ox spirit had shown up, as well – its oversized horns swung around as it cried out in fury, scratching and destroying everything they came into contact with.

Protesting growls, hisses, groans, and stomping hoofs sounded as the chains constricted the monsters further. Lena's small figure approached the bound angel with confidence, and then she twirled that stray lock of his hair around an elegant finger. "You're mine."

After a few seconds, those in chains disintegrated into particles of dust that danced through the hallway.

_The painting absorbed them?_

Leisurely, Lena, in full view of the paralyzed Sohmas and Tohru, walked behind us and lightly placed her hands on our shoulders. Satoshi and I were equally as paralyzed, so she gave us a vigorous shake. "Don't worry."

The haunting images of those monsters kept playing through my mind. Even if they were gone now, I couldn't ignore the fact that the house was in shambles. There were gaping holes in the walls and floor, a missing door, broken glass and dishes everywhere, splinters of wood all over… _How can I not worry?_

"What do you mean?" she asked while pointing at the remnants of chaos.

I blinked. The house was in perfect order, as if nothing had ever happened. How? When?

"See? I got this." With a final wink, she disappeared into the necklace that remained around Satoshi's neck.

The house was dead quiet for what felt like ages. Color slowly returned to our pale faces, and it took us a while to say anything after being so terrified. I simply stayed in the corner of the kitchen next to Satoshi, breathing, reminding myself over and over that we were safe. When we had recovered some, his hand gave mine a comforting squeeze – I discovered that he was smiling a pure, beaming smile, and couldn't help but do the same.

* * *

"Ok," Dave said to himself when he was safely inside his car in the parking lot. He nervously ran his hand through his hair and told himself to concentrate. "The Reflections of Regret is _mine_. If Krad was able to find my office so easily, _he_ will be able to, as well. I need to go somewhere where I can think in peace, some place neither can find – but where?"

Crossing his wrists over the steering wheel, he lowered his head and sought to identify the best plan of action. At first, he ignored the white sheet of paper that sat on the passenger seat, but the more he thought about it, the more it stood out to him as a good idea. _Surely, it's the last thing they would expect._

He picked up his cell phone and dialed the number on the sheet. While the phone rang, he snuck a glance at the pocket watch. There would be plenty of time, and there weren't any stray magic vessels anywhere nearby that could interrupt his travel.

"Hello?" a female answered.

"Hey. Might this be Sam?"

"Mhm, that's me." She contemplated something. "You…wouldn't happen to be Dave, would you?"

"That is correct."

Upon hearing this, she let out a pleasant, feathery giggle. "To what do I owe the pleasure of this call?"

"I was hoping you'd be free this evening. I'd like to…well, get to know you."

"The feeling is mutual. I'm free whenever you are."

"Then how about we make it a date? Dinner anywhere you'd like, drinks on me. I'll pick you up at seven – sound alright?"

"Sounds great." She gave him her address and detailed that it was a small apartment near the back of the complex. "I'll see you then."

When Sam snapped her cell phone shut, she slowly spun around, elated. In all honesty, she had never expected him to call to begin with, because these kinds of things never happened to her. Instead, her best friend Jessica was the one whom fortune smiled upon: she was just a little bit prettier, a tad smarter, a smidge more charismatic, and never without male attention. At least she didn't let it all get to her head – she remained supportive of Sam and even made it a mission to divert the attention to her. Nevertheless, things with guys just never worked out the way she hoped. _Wait until she hears about this, though! _Sam thought with a big grin. _Me? Landing a man that handsome? If all goes well tonight, the tables will have officially turned. I know I can't get my hopes up too high yet, but still._

Though she returned her eyes to the internet article she had been reading, she could not focus on it. Her thoughts wandered elsewhere to what she would wear, what she would do with her hair, what Dave would be like, how the evening would go, the look on Jessica's face...

* * *

To pass the time, Dave drove to a spacious park on the other side of town so as to be comfortably far from his office while he made preparations. He fully intended to enjoy himself later that evening, but in order to make that happen, he had to be certain that he wouldn't be found by either angel. This merely required a frequent checking of the pocket watch. It sounded simple enough, but as long as the watch was open, its magic would become easily detectable and could reveal his position. Also, he had to make sure that it remained hidden from the woman: if she discovered the magic and became suspicious, Lena would definitely interfere. He thought about ridding his person of the Purging Faces to keep her at bay, but the artwork was too valuable to destroy and too powerful to let fall into the wrong hands; he would have to find a way to make it work. Indeed, this would be a delicate process, but he felt thrilled by the challenge.

Once the deadline passed, he'd let Krad and Dark deal with each other, and then go straight for the girl. The only problem was that he'd need the other half of the Reflections of Regret to be successful, and it had just conveniently disappeared to an unknown location, as if taunting him. Did Dark have it already? Or did Krad?

He decided he'd find out. Opening the watch furtively, one of its many hands told him that all magic vessels were still predictably yet reassuringly in the direction of the girl's house. Afterwards, he whispered into the mirror within: "Come to me." It glowed for a fleeting moment, and then stopped. Something was definitely interfering, so he repeated the words firmly for good measure. Then, he tucked it away in a pocket and, careful to wear heavily tinted sunglasses to conceal his unique eyes, decided to shop around for a more relaxed change of clothes. Tonight was going to be interesting, for sure.

* * *

Krad sat up on the ground and was simultaneously greeted by the pleasing clangs and jingles of his chains falling off. Looking every which way, he observed with panic that the world looked very similar to the one he had come from. As opposed to the real world, there wasn't as much fine detail or depth of color, and everything felt the same. The air was perfectly still. Temperature didn't exist. There were no sounds, no smells. Nothing moved – even the birds in the sky hung motionless – and when he looked into the distance, the end of his line of sight actually constituted the edge of the world itself. _Did she…kill me?_

_No…I can't be dead. That's Miss Alyssa's house, over there. _He turned to his left and gazed at the burning sunset which, upon close examination, possessed a curious, brush-stroked quality.

_I'm inside my master's painting!_

Behind him, the three other monsters lay passed out on the painted ground, strangled by the chains. When he bent around to look at them, he noticed that his shoulder was still damaged, too. Before he could get too angry at Lena, some wordless thought filled his mind that caused him to redirect his attention toward a particular place. There, hidden in strokes of neat grass, was a sparkling ring. Upon walking closer, the wordless sensation organized itself. It was calling him. "Come to me," it said. "_Come to me._"

Krad picked the ring up and juggled his options. _I'm afraid that escaping from this painting on my own will be a difficult task. If I wear the ring, I could get out, but Master Hiwatari would have control of me, defeating the purpose. If I don't wear the ring, I remain trapped here for an indefinite amount of time. If neither, I shall at least alert him to my presence._

He grasped the ring tightly in his fist and focused on sending a strong pulse of magic into it. Here in this world, it flowed much more intensely, which worked to his advantage. Such power was guaranteed to give 'Dave' chills.

That, it did. Not long after sending his message, Dave was seized by an unsettling, hair-raising burst of dark energy from his pocket watch that was undeniably Krad's. He feared this the most: it meant that he would either have to work with Krad or fight him if he was to obtain the ring, and he knew from yesterday's death encounter and now this harsh magic warning that Krad was certainly not in the cooperating mood. For the sake of life, though, he would do whatever was necessary.

* * *

The reeking air had finally cleared from the house, and with it, our uneasiness. The curses belonging to the Sohmas and Satoshi were lifted now, meaning that there was less for them – and me – to worry about. It was almost time to think of a plan of action to take down Satoshi's father and learn the truth, but not quite. According to Ayame, we could not proceed until I opened my other present.

I stood there in my room with folded arms, eying up the box. From the looks that Satoshi and Haru had given me when I left for my room, I could tell that I was in for something - whether good or bad, I wasn't sure.

"You don't have to wear it!" Kyo announced through the locked door. "Please, don't wear it! Hang on to your innocence, I'm begging you!"

Following this, I heard Tohru's sweet voice try to soothe him. "It'll be alright, Kyo! The one I -"

"Don't you try yours on either, you hear?"

Laughing, I placed my hands on the lid and cautiously scooted it to the side. The first thing I saw was black lace. _Well, what do we have here? _Considering that Ayame was Ayame, this had great potential to steer in a problematic direction. In any case, I lifted the item fully out of the box.

When I did, a small, white card in the bottom of the box caught my attention, so I picked it up to read it:

"_I am deeply sorry, my princess. ~ Ayame_"

I shook my head. _He's apologizing, too?_ I then resumed unfolding the intriguing item and held it up to myself in front of a mirror, amazed by the final result. It must have required a staggering amount of skill to make. A minute later, I found that it fit perfectly, as well.

When I placed my hand on the doorknob to exit the room, I couldn't help gazing at the painting on the wall next to it once more, thinking of the evils trapped within. I was so glad that everyone could be free. _Satoshi._ The true Satoshi that revealed itself to me that one day no longer had to be hidden. He could begin to truly live.

But then the thought of Dark popped up in my mind, causing me to sink down on my bed with a sigh. _Here we are, living, but where are you? _I reached for my sketchbook and found the drawing that immediately preceded the one I was looking for, but when I flipped it to the side, only a blank page awaited.

_Huh?_

I flipped to the next page. It was blank. Backtracking a few pages, I still couldn't find that one special drawing of Dark. After flipping through the whole book one last time, I verified that it was gone.

* * *

Fingering the necklace in his hands, Satoshi returned to his spot in the living room to give his aching body a break while he waited for me to come out. Both he and Haru, who stood nearby around the corner from the hallway, could feel a thick aura of excitement and pride radiating from a happily humming Ayame. It was concerning.

Kyo moped out of the hallway with Tohru, sighing exaggeratedly. "What's taking her so darn long?"

"Oh, it's just a little bit complicated to put on," Ayame answered with total nonchalance.

His head drooped under a cloud of gloom lines, and he ventured to drag Ayame outside to knock some sense into him. "Sicko!"

"What did I do?" he sobbed.

Tohru chased after Kyo to help break up the fight, and Hatsuharu watched them speed away, amused. Satoshi coolly pushed his glasses up and grinned – the fact that everyone was fretting over something so trivial proved that life was good again. While he continued fidgeting with the necklace, he let himself dwell on the memories of that morning. _So that was Lena. If she – with that kind of power – is on our side, then my father doesn't stand a chance._

He found himself expecting a defiant reply from within by force of habit, but soon relaxed. It was liberating to know that he could now permanently think undisturbed. _Enjoy it while you can. Who knows how long you'll last?_

I cracked my door open and cautiously said "It's on." The only person around to hear was Hatsuharu – Satoshi was elsewhere, and from what I had overheard, Kyo and Ayame were bickering again.

"May I see?"

I opened the door all the way and invited him over, feeling too out of place to venture into the hallway. The outfit – a stylish ensemble that blended bold leather and stud accents with feminine lace and soft colors in a light, summery way – was a daring stretch from my usual T-shirt and shorts, but a much-needed change. "It's not at all what I was expecting."

He began to laugh nervously. "That would be thanks to me."

"Really?"

"Mhm. Left to himself, Ayame was going to take it a bit too far: _that_," he pointed, "was shorter, _that_ was tighter, _that_ was...erm, _wasn't_. I got to see most of it yesterday when he asked the scary girl to model, and that was when I decided to throw some pointers his way." Haru planted his elbow on the door frame and leaned against it with the other arm akimbo, admiring the finished product. "It looks really nice now."

"Come to think of it," I said, looking down at the outfit and then up at his, "I see some resemblance."

"Well, those ideas weren't really based on my own sense of style. I was going by the drawing of Dark that you showed me, thinking you'd appreciate something similar. I gotta hand it to him, he has some great taste."

"Speaking of the drawing, did you tear it out of my sketchbook when you used it as a reference?"

"No, I peeked at it quick and put it back on the shelf. Why, is it missing or something?"

"Yes, it is." I motioned for him to follow me into my room, and flipped through the sketchbook with him at my side. "See?"

"Hmm." He contemplated this for a moment. My worried expression moved him to wrap an arm comfortingly around my shoulder, this time without fear of transforming. "Hey, we'll find it, alright?"

"Huh? Oh, it's not that," I shrugged. "I was just thinking…it sounds like I won't be able to see Dark until we take care of Satoshi's father. I know we've got Lena working with us, but knowing he's after me for some unknown reason makes me...worried."

_I'm pretty sure I know why he's after you, _Haru thought with a certain measure of dejection. _Why hasn't Lena said anything about that to you? If she still hasn't, I'd better not. I don't want you to worry about us. This information about Dark is news, though – I should tell the others about that later, so that they know what we're getting ourselves into. It's just…Uggh, looking at that face, this pact is harder to keep than I thought it was going to be. She's scared. She wants Dark. I'll definitely protect her life, but I can't tell her that I'm against Dark – I don't want to die, either. Right now, what am I supposed to do?_

He took the sketchbook from my hands, set it back on the shelf, and then brought his other arm around me for a full hug. "Try not to worry. Trust me – we'll get this sorted out, 'kay? I'm not gonna let anything happen to you."

"…Thanks, Haru."

I felt him take my hand and give it a tug toward the door. "First, cuteness," he teased, "we've got some more people to show you off to!"

* * *

Later in the afternoon, Sam decided that the appointed time of the outing was near enough to begin preparations, so she plugged in her curling iron and brushed her dark hair while waiting for it to heat up.

The doorbell rang, interrupting her date-centered thoughts. _Ah! That might be Jessica – today's her day off of work, and it's far too early for Dave to be here yet._

Sam stepped over to the door and pulled it open, but nobody was there. She poked her head out and looked both ways, searching for any people, cars, or mischievous children in hiding, but found nothing.

"Jess?" she spoke to the empty air.

_Hmm. That's strange. Oh well._

She returned to the bathroom where her hot curling iron waited. When she looked up at the mirror to begin the curling process, she was met by the startling reflection of a shadowy figure standing behind her. The iron clattered noisily the floor.

Upon seeing the face, Sam broke out into laughter. "Geez, Jess! Since when were you so good at sneaking up behind people?"

Out of the blue, she felt a most curious sensation and then everything was drowned in utter blackness.

"Please do as I say," said a voice that clearly wasn't Jessica's. "I'll make it up to you later."

* * *

"A medium, you say?" Satoshi asked, handing the necklace to me.

"Yes. She told me that she needs them to communicate with people. This thing is just a weird little gift from my grandfather, but it's somehow suitable to be a medium."

The lighthearted mood of the afternoon had faded away. After everyone had seen Ayame's creation, Kyo's gratitude toward Hatsuharu for his assistance had grown limitless, Satoshi was relieved, Tohru fell in awe, and Ayame's liveliness was boosted to unthinkable levels. We'd agreed that it would be best to wait for him to calm down and allow Satoshi a bit more rest before beginning our planning, so I had taken advantage of the time by finally trying out Tohru's cooking. That monster's nauseating stench (which I would never forget as long as I lived), coupled with such a level fear, had stolen my appetite for a while.

Now that everyone was at his best, we all gathered together around the table, determined and serious.

"She also told me that Dave…I mean, your…Mr. Hiwatari, he's found a way to turn them off when she tries to use them."

"I'm not surprised." Satoshi's expression did not change. "You should keep this necklace on you at all times, just in case." Turning to the Sohmas, he said "Now, where does he live? Ayame, you've been there twice."

"I must specify that I do not know where he _lives_," Ayame replied. "We have only been to his office, which is located in the middle of town within a medium-sized insurance company building, not far from the stores we traveled to a few days ago."

At this, Satoshi paused. "That would be why he has an alias. Still, what is he doing out in the open like that? He's putting himself at risk! Maybe…" An idea came to him. "Alyssa, may I use your computer?"

I consented, and then everyone followed him into the basement. After waiting through a brief start-up screen, he opened an internet window and typed "Dave Irata" with a few other specific words into a search engine. The large number of results troubled him: through unknown means, his father was equipped with a favorable, widespread reputation and connections in the business world that would make it next to impossible to take him down secretly. Given this, the noble quest to capture him for preventative and interrogative purposes transformed into a crime that would undoubtedly involve the public.

_If we aren't careful about the way we handle him, _Satoshi thought, _the authorities could track us down and expose us. _He shared these concerns with us, but regardless, we all knew that we still needed to do_ something_. According to him, we would start with a simple trip to his father's office; and, should that prove insufficient, which it likely would, a touch of Hikari magic would be necessary. He would take care of that on his own. All that we needed to do now was wait for the cover of darkness.

As we surfaced from the basement, I thought I heard a noise, but because no one else seemed to have heard anything strange, I shook that thought away. Then, I heard it again, louder this time: a muffled sound coming from the front door that was more like soft thumping than crisp knocking.

Everyone was made instantly anxious. It only took Kyo one glance at Tohru to be reminded of how badly he wanted to stay alive and how the person on the other side of that door could very well be the biggest obstacle in his way. He proclaimed that he would answer the door and marched on ahead, leaving the rest of us to crane our heads from behind him to get a good view.

When he opened it, nothing was there except something white centered on the mat in front of it. Kyo stepped outside, bent down to pick it up, and stopped to read what was apparently written on it. His breathing temporarily halted.

"Kyo?" I asked, trying to see what it was.

He immediately tore it to shreds which he then threw out into the open, letting the breeze sweep them away. "Not important," he said. "Just some stupid ad."

On the inside, Kyo was panicking. _This is it. He's here. And he's coming to steal her._

_Tonight._

* * *

The time had come. Dave, now free of his heavy business suit and looking more like the average human male his age, cruised down the road with his window rolled all the way down, keeping watch for the address number that he had been repeating in his head.

_Ah, there it is. _He turned into the apartment complex and slowly crept through the system of buildings until he located the right door. When he parked, he took a moment to think to himself. _As soon as you step out of this car, you're throwing your cares to this delightful wind. You'll be almost impossible to find, flirting with the public like this. Life will be yours, and tonight will be a small taste of its beginning. _

He checked his pocket watch one more time. Three minutes until seven, no lurking danger. Good.

He strode up to the door, knocked, struck a pose just for kicks. Sam answered promptly and stood for a moment without speaking, allowing herself to take in the details. Daylight revealed that Dave was even more handsome than she remembered: he possessed such clear, expressive eyes, perfect symmetry, and the most even skin she had ever seen. On top of that, there was no denying that he had a great figure. He could _not_ be from around here.

"Please, come in," Sam said, stepping to the side. "I have to take care of one more thing – it'll only take a minute." She hurried away to another room, her tousled, dark curls bouncing with each step.

Dave gulped and tried to empty his mind while he waited. He stepped through the entryway and observed with interest the bits of the cozy apartment that he could see from his vantage point.

Forty more seconds.

There were more than a few pictures on the fridge of Sam and the other girl who had been driving her during their first encounter – Jessica, was that her name? Yes, it might be useful to remember her.

Thirty more seconds.

The place was also very neatly organized, save a few dog toys on the ground. _She would make a better_ _assistant than Mio ever did. _Suddenly, an inquisitive beagle came trotting up to greet him. Soon after he knelt down to pet the friendly animal, Sam returned.

"Out, Hugo!" she ordered gently, and the dog reluctantly complied by shuffling away to another room. "I hope you don't mind dogs."

"Oh, it's not a problem. I love them! Yours is quite well-behaved, too."

"It wasn't easy," she sighed.

Five more seconds.

"Well then, Sam, shall we?"

Dave opened the door and offered an elbow, which Sam gladly took with a charmed smile.

"Is…something wrong?" she asked when she felt an unusually strong pulse coming from him. He seemed to be thinking of something negative, though maybe it was her imagination.

_Dark's time has run out, _he thought. _Has the great phantom thief failed? _Feeling the Reflections of Regret in his pocket, his features lit up. He returned that same delighted smile to her and said "Just a little nervous, that's all."

_Even his teeth are flawless, _Sam noticed, tucking some hair behind her ear. _Yet he's still human like the rest of us. _

"So, where to?" Dave asked after they were both seated in his car. "It can be anything at all." _The farther, the better._

"Hmm…How about the new Italian place over on the east side?"

"Sure thing!" He scratched the back of his head nervously. "But uhh, you might have to guide me there – I'm new to this area."

_I knew it! _"Heh, that's alright. Take a left when you exit the complex, and then take another left at the lights." She waited while Dave backed out and made his way through the maze of buildings before speaking again. "If you don't mind my asking, where are you originally from?"

"Chicago." _At least, that's what my bio says._

"What would bring you from a bustling city like that all the way out to this little place?"

"Business. It didn't take me very long to climb the ranks after graduating, and I was sent out here to manage and direct the activity of but one branch of a prevalent insurance company. I plan to buy the place out soon, and, er, _reside_ here for a while, because I've taken a liking to this small-town feel." As he was instructed, he turned left at the first set of traffic lights he encountered. "Where do I go next?"

"Keep going straight for now." Sam mulled over his information in her mind. "Wow, you're what, twenty-five, and that successful already? I'm jealous."

"Twenty-six, to be exact. And success may seem nice, but it can get lonely at times." For the sake of his ultimate goal, he did his best to pull out the charm, utilizing his eyes as his most effective weapon. "Maybe I wound up with a good job, but that's not important to me. Any type of life is meaningless without somebody to share it with. That's why I'm here with you."

She found herself blushing. _He's not some arrogant, good-for-nothing pretty-man – he's genuine! I have a good feeling about this. _"I'm surprised you haven't already found someone."

"I've tried, but they've always been the same. In the midst of it all, your spontaneous move stood out to me." He glanced affectionately at her as long as he would dare while driving. "Enough about me. I'd like to hear more about you."

Soaking in bliss, Sam almost forgot to tell him to turn. The two of them erupted into laughter when Dave just barely made the turn without tipping the car, which served to erase all jitters and pave the way for easy, enjoyable conversation. As the evening progressed, she realized that she was becoming attracted to him for more than just his looks. She couldn't believe that this total stranger had turned out to be a complete gentleman with so many good qualities! What were the chances of that? The one part she _really_ couldn't wrap her brain around was having a man of his caliber equally as interested in _her_, as well. Maybe, just maybe, she had at last met someone whom she could get serious with.

* * *

Choosing from a selection of hoodies, jackets, sunglasses, and make-up, we all made sure that we were officially unrecognizable. It wouldn't matter much, because night had fallen over the town, but we simply couldn't risk being identified by anyone – I in particular, being the only human among us whose identity could be traced.

I had slipped my necklace-medium over my head, and with this, we were ready to leave for Hiwatari's office.

"Remember to keep your voices down," Satoshi instructed us, and the six of us filed outside into another warm night.

Tohru grabbed a hold of Kyo's hand. "But…what if he really will kill us? What if he kills…?"

"Shh," Kyo said without turning his head. "He won't." _Because Dark will. _He chose to wear sunglasses as a part of his disguise so that no one would notice him frantically searching the woods and the skies. If he had to, he would take that thief of lives down on his own.

I was inwardly worrying about the exact same things as Tohru. _We've got Lena, but I'm still so nervous. What if I really do die this time?_

_What did I say? Don't worry, girl! Ohhh, I can't wait for this!_

I looked down in surprise: my necklace gave off a hint of a blue glow. Even though I was walking behind Satoshi and Ayame, they both stopped dead in their tracks. Did they hear her, too?

"Hey guys, L-"

Satoshi raised his hand as if to tell me to be quiet. A short ways ahead, a bush beside the path began to rustle loudly.

"What is it, Satoshi?" Ayame asked him. "It's just an animal, right?"

Satoshi ignored that comment and began to sprint full speed ahead. We did our best to follow him as closely as we could. When the thing in the bushes sensed him coming, it, too, ran full speed ahead on the sidewalk.

And then, it took off into the air.

* * *

Dave walked around to open the passenger door, offered to take Sam's hand while she got out of the car, and then walked her back to her apartment door in the dark with his hand around her waist. Both of them laughed about something they were talking about the whole way. Not only had the whole ordeal gone entirely according to plan, but he had enjoyed himself even more than he thought he would. Sam made for entertaining company, and could hold her liquor impressively well: she was still faring gracefully in her heeled shoes, and it only took her two tries to find the right key to the apartment door. _Maybe I'll spare her a painful internship and hire her as my new replacement assistant, if she's always as pleasant as she was today. _

He shooed those thoughts away. There was no need for reminiscing about how great the evening had been, because he knew that it was far from over.

When Sam opened the door to Hugo's excited welcome, she could not bring herself to close it again. She didn't want this night to end. This incredible man had changed her life in the course of a few hours, and she couldn't watch him walk away.

Thankfully, he didn't seem to have that intention. He took a few subtle steps in her direction until he was only inches away, watching cautiously for any body language signaling that she minded. Instead, he received just the opposite message. Her deep brown eyes glistened warmly, invitingly.

Sam could not resist the urge to kiss those finely-formed lips, so she tugged him down toward her by the collar of his shirt. Before she knew it, he had pushed her inside and locked the door behind them both. He smirked slightly, and then resumed kissing her. It was like a dream – just days ago, she could've sworn that she was destined to be forever alone. Could this really be happening?

"Seriously?" she said when things started heating up, pulling away temporarily. She ran her hand along the side of his face, almost as if to remind herself that he was real.

He covered her hand with his own. "Don't believe me? What do my eyes say?"

That was enough to convince her. Eventually, the passion grew so great that he picked her up and started toward her room. _And just like that..._

"Hold that thought," she said, requesting that she be put down.

"Hmm?"

She quickly snuck into her room and shut the door.

"Oh?" Dave chuckled to himself and took a slow, satisfying breath. "This should be good."

Unexpectedly, he heard the sound of whispering from behind the door, so he leaned in to listen.

"It's done," Sam whispered. "Happy now?"

"Thank you, mademoiselle," came a lower whisper. "I'm sorry to say that I need to erase your memory."

_What? _Dave thought. He buttoned his shirt back up and was about to say something until he heard Sam's whispers pick up a little louder.

"How much of it are you going to erase?" she asked with worry.

"Everything from tonight."

"Everything? Please, not everything! _Please, _not Dave! I had one of the best nights of my life tonight, so please…"

The other voice paused for a long time. "I'll try."

Dave finally called through the door. "Sam? Who's in there?"

There was no answer, so he tried to open the door. It was locked. "Sam, answer me!"

_Could it be?_ He searched around in his pocket.

His face felt hot. The Reflections of Regret was gone.

"What? _This can't be!"_

He heard a car start up outside. It dawned on him that the bedroom had a window facing the front of the building, so he bolted to the front door, unlocked it, and hurried out, only to be blinded by the headlights of Sam's car.

"Sam?"

As the car backed out and the headlights were turned away, Dave recognized a familiar silhouette in the driver's seat that couldn't have been Sam. One leap to the window next to the door revealed that she was passed out on her bed – and his next few frantic leaps were toward his car. He fumbled for his keys and started up the Lexus as fast as he could. Luckily, the other car wasn't too far ahead, but the driver seemed to be just as familiar with the maze-like layout of apartment buildings as Dave was by now.

There was no way to physically stop that car without causing a huge scene, so he pulled the Purging Faces from his other pocket in a spur-of-the-moment move when they reached a main road. He held it forward, aiming its magic at the car in front of him; somehow, the driver realized this, switched to an empty lane, and punched the brakes in order to end up following Dave. In his rearview mirror, Dave could see a mass of energy forming behind the windshield of the car that was now behind him. Drops of sweat formed on his brow.

He weaved through several cars and took a reckless turn through a red light, fueling a cacophony of blaring horns and angry drivers, and also forcing the other driver to waste his built-up energy on a car that threatened to crash into him if he didn't do anything. The damaged, half-melted car ricocheted to a far corner of the intersection and away from the rest of traffic, where the passengers exited safely.

By then, Dave had spun his car around and aimed the Faces at Sam's car. The magic reached one rear car door and the trunk only, absorbing them and serving to slow the car down.

"What do you think you're doing, Hiwatari?"

His heart racing with adrenaline and fury, Dave twisted his head to see the girl sitting in the passenger seat with her arms folded.

"Lena? Of all times!"

"You bet! Don't you miss me?"

He opened his door and slammed the Purging Faces into the asphalt, cracking it into pieces. He would miss the precious artwork dearly, but at least Lena disappeared.

On the down side, so did the other car.

_Oh no, he's headed for her house, isn't he?_

A short distance down the road, he happened to discover Sam's car parked off to the side, so he hesitantly pulled up beside it. It was empty.

_That cursed…!_

The race for Alyssa's house had commenced.

* * *

After the thing in the bushes had flown away, everybody continued forward at a fast pace into a stretch of road that was completely black – the place where Kyo had found Satoshi the previous night. We relied heavily on him and Ayame to be our eyes in this area. After a few minutes, we witnessed headlights cut through the darkness from a distance. The car was traveling remarkably fast.

"Hide!" Satoshi shouted. Everybody swiftly jumped into the trees and stood rigid against them to camouflage themselves.

When the car flew past, Satoshi hopped out of the forest first and said "It's safe!"

Kyo and Tohru emerged from the trees, followed by Hatsuharu and Ayame. The four followed the sound of Satoshi's voice to meet with him in the darkness and inform him of their presence, but there was one person missing.

"Alyssa, it's ok to come out now," Satoshi called again. Nobody heard anything.

"Where'd she go?" Tohru asked the group.

Kyo sizzled in silence.

"Something didn't happen to her..._did it?_" Haru snapped.

He charged in the opposite direction, leaving behind a trail of fire.

"_FOLLOW THAT FREAKING CAR!"_

I heard the chorus of shouts as they started to call my name, but each call sounded farther and farther away. It didn't take long for them to fade into nothing.


	9. Reflections of Regret

Author's Note (July 13, 2012): Ermahgerd! I finally wrote another chapter! I'm a terrible human being, I know. I SOWWY. :c

So enjoy! Please, _please_ review. All of your thoughts and comments really helped remind me that this is a project worth finishing. And I will try to get around to the next chapter relatively soon. :D

* * *

CHAPTER 9

The house, awash in darkness, showed no signs of life. Making sure that he was alone, Dave exited his car and sped swiftly to the door. Naturally, it was locked. There was no way of opening the large window beside it from the outside, either, so he tiptoed around until he located a smaller one, which he then shoved open with relative ease.

Beyond that window was a bedroom – most likely the girl's. He focused on slowing his breathing and controlling every movement that he made, aiming to be as stealthy as possible; for although it looked like nobody was home, there was always the chance that one or more of his enemies would be waiting around the corner.

However, at this point, how could he hope to stand against them with his magic power stolen? He began to wish that he hadn't let his anger drive him to destroy the Faces. There wasn't anything he could do about it now. He'd have to trust in his fists for this one, if nothing else.

Peering into the hallway, he was met by more empty silence and darkness. _I'll take a chance. If she's here, she's here – I can't waste any more time. _

His feet took him with increasing speed through the other rooms of the house. Where was everyone? One final check of the basement showed him that the house truly was empty, so he climbed back up the stairs, mind racing. _No. She's gone. No. No! I will not lose!_

As he turned to go back into the hallway, he knew something was off. A sixth sense told him that someone else was present.

"We finally meet, father."

"Dave" pushed his glasses up and offered a lifeless glare to the silhouette, smothering any hint of surprise. "My dear son. How _wonderful_ it is to meet you here."

Satoshi stepped forward to reveal himself. "Hand her over."

"Me? I don't have her, what are you talking about?"

"Stop lying. You took her!"

"Why, I came here to _find_ her! You mean to tell me you don't have her, either?"

They both were alerted by raucous metallic clanging coming from outside. Dave dashed past Satoshi to the nearest window – the one he entered through – to find that Hatsuharu was taking out his anger on his shiny new vehicle.

"_She's not here!"_ Haru shouted, his boiling echo searing the night for several seconds.

"Hey!" Dave yelled. "Stop ruining my car!"

Having torn away his disguise long ago, the furious Sohma angled his face over his shoulder toward the source of the voice. He took no time to lock his eyes, frigid gun barrels of steel, on the man. A sickly black aura rose in a fog around his figure, agitating the dust beneath his leather boots.

"Here it comes," Kyo, Ayame and Tohru sighed to themselves.

Haru stormed up to the window with blazing speed and brought his face an inch away from Dave's. Beneath the black shadows of the night, his eyes glinted mercilessly. "_Do you think I freakin' care, you twisted bastard? Where is Alyssa?"_

Dave drew back as the ball of black fire vaulted through the window. Kyo was quick to follow, allowing his inner rage to take over. How could that imposter not have her? How could she have disappeared so quickly – _on their watch?_

"Leave it to them, my dear," Ayame gently instructed Tohru as they waited outside the window in safety. She nervously took his hand, noticing that he, too, was just as flustered as the rest of them.

When Dave accidentally backed up into Satoshi, he ceased moving. He was surrounded. If they'd buy it, the truth might actually be able to save him, here. Glancing up again, he watched as the two hot-headed ones cracked their knuckles and readied their stances. "I was hoping you'd tell _me_, boys," he shrugged calmly.

"_Don't give me that crap!"_

A sudden blow impacted his right cheek and weakened him down to his hands and knees. Now separated from his glasses, the drops of blood that stained the carpet fell in a vague blur.

Satoshi held up a hand to the others, who stood aside with reluctance, and casually knelt down in front of his adopted father. "You thought you were going to win, didn't you?"

With his jaw hanging open limply, Hiwatari lifted his head. His words came out somewhat slurred. "So did you."

"What were you trying to do, coming here? The same thing Krad tried?"

A clipped huff of acknowledgement was his only reply. It took all that the Sohmas had to resist delivering more physical damage.

"I'm sorry to inform you that he was defeated by your own assistant, Mio. And you, my dear father, will be stopped by your own beloved son."

"I'm not surprised that you knew her role," Hiwatari laughed. "You're so intelligent. You've always been so gifted, son. But what makes you think you can stop me? I've got the world on my side. Hell, I even control Lena. My power will rain down on your head if you get in my way."

Before Satoshi could offer a retort, Kyo cut him off. "Now hold on a second, what is that nonsense? You _control _Lena? What's that all about, huh?"

Ayame leaned in closer to hear.

"She created me with so much power…" Hiwatari wiped his bleeding lips off on his wrist and slowly rose to his feet. Then, he spread his arms in a confident manner. "Don't ask me why. It was _her _mistake. I've all but overthrown her – for all intents and purposes, I've taken her place!"

Haru readied his fist again. "_You're asking for it."_

"What? It's true." He leaned his head to either side to loosen up his neck after the blow. "I made you, Hatsuharu, Ayame, Tohru. I am your Lena. I am your creator; you are the created. You answer to me."

The readied fist sprung back to begin its launch through the air. Satoshi and Kyo, even in their anger, knew it was better to let the man speak than to hurt him, and so they impulsively reached out to stop the attack. "_Say that again, you mother-"_

"Rin."

Haru froze, and not because the others had caught hold of his arm.

"Don't you want a wish, Haru?" teased Hiwatari. "If you hurt me, I can't bring her here for you, can I?"

Lost in a maze of conflicting emotions, he couldn't move. His gaze stretched beyond Hiwatari's face into a very possible realm where Rin was alive, well, happy, free, his.

"No, Haru!" the others yelled in order to jolt him back to reality.

_Just like that, I've tamed the black beast._

A few more seconds passed. Haru let his head fall forward and gritted his teeth. "No."

_What?_

"I wouldn't do that to her. _I wouldn't let scum like you control her, you disgusting phony_," he snarled."Between leaving her dead and wishing her alive through you, I'd rather let her be. Besides…we're probably going to die soon anyway."

The fog-like aura around him darkened into inky black tendrils as he looked up through his hair. "But don't think for a second that you're not coming with us." Gathering his composure, he withdrew his arm and tried to let his anger subside. It was no use lashing out right now. Lena _had_ to make him suffer for what he'd said.

_Nice control,_ Kyo thought. _It's probably true, though, given the note I found earlier. I just can't believe it. We're close to the end. It'll be over soon. Haru's turned out to be the wise one._

That thought creeped into everyone's minds, no matter how firm they were in their will to fight. But for now, they were still alive. Tohru thought she saw Kyo's eyes flit her way for a second then, but it was hard to be sure in the dark.

Kyo swiftly wrapped Hiwatari's arms into a pin behind his back. "Keep talking."

"Foolish kid," came a strained grunt. "I don't have any more information. You can do nothing to me."

"It seems you underestimate us," Satoshi smirked coolly. "You forget that, should the dreaded end come upon us, we will all die together. You are mortal, just as we are. Your pedestal is not glorified as you'd like to think, father. We can and will take you down for what you've done. Though…I don't think we'll kill you. That's not our place."

"What do you mean by _that_?" Hiwatari asked, miffed, beginning to feel the sting in his shoulders and wrists.

"I'm starting to understand her. Lena." Everyone listened attentively as he continued. "She doesn't act rashly or naively; she acts with pure purpose. She knows what she's doing, even while we may not. Something tells me that she didn't create you for us to kill."

There was something unnerving about his pause.

"She had a better idea."

Kyo felt the man tense up and tried to guess where this was going. _Is he talking about Dark? _But he took note of the direction Satoshi was looking – directly behind Hiwatari – and it all made sense. He subtly shook his head in same direction so that everyone else could understand, as well. Here was their chance.

"What are you blabbering about, son?"

Satoshi brought two fingers up to the man's chest and lightly jabbed him. With a hauntingly mellifluous tone, he uttered one last word that was drenched in fateful certainty.

"_Checkmate_."

It all happened in an instant. Hiwatari burst out of Kyo's hold and tried to make a break for the window, shoving Satoshi to the floor in the process, but Haru swiftly caught him by the waist and bound his nearest arm. Hiwatari's free hand gripped the open windowsill as he was pulled in the other direction, so Tohru, desiring to help in some way, took it upon herself to slam the window down as hard as she could. He sharply withdrew his hand in irritation and gave it a shake, allowing Kyo an easy opening to seize his other arm. Facing the window still, he continued to struggle while the others tugged him deeper into the room.

Ayame opened the window again and, with a sardonic grin, waved goodbye. "If you'll excuse us, mister, we have a princess to find."

"No!" Hiwatari shouted, letting his panic show through at last. "What are you doing?"

Satoshi's world was spinning, but he couldn't afford the time to recover and help. "Do it now!" he ordered from the floor. "Throw him in!"

With a big heave, Hatsuharu and Kyo yanked him backwards and jointly tossed him into the painting that hung on the wall.

The fiery sunset swallowed him whole, and he vanished from the room.

* * *

The frantic knocking was useless. No one answered.

"Sam? Sam! Open up!"

Jessica went to wriggle the door handle but found it unlocked. She ran through the front room, nearly tripping over a barking Hugo along the way, until she arrived in Sam's bedroom. There she was, lying sideways on the bed, fully dressed, apparently sleeping.

"Sam!" Jessica gave her a rough shake, causing her to stir. "Wake up, wake up! Why are you sleeping?"

"…Wh…what?"

Sam groggily oriented herself and then observed how disheveled Jessica was. "Hey, what's wrong, Jess?"

"Nothing's wrong with me, I'm concerned about _you_! Did you hear the news?"

"What news?"

Jessica expelled a lungful of air in frustration, grabbed the television remote, and sat back on the bed.

The television sparked on and turned to the local news channel by her command. Live footage of a nearby road intersection was displayed, followed by a short interview with one of the collision victims.

"_It was crazy_," the interviewed man said. "_Those two cars were just flyin', man, like they were right outta Need for Speed or somethin'. And they must'a had some kinda laser gun, 'cuz look at my car, man! He freakin' melted my car!_"

The camera cut to a professionally-dressed on-the-scene news reporter. "_We have reports that one of the vehicles involved in the dangerous chase belongs to a young woman named Samantha Compton, though officials believe that her car is stolen property. It was discovered off to the side of the road with missing parts and a gaping hole through the windshield. The driver and weapon were not found. It appears that the other vehicle managed to escape. Thankfully, no one was seriously injured during the incident…_"

Jessica shut the television off. "I came as fast as I could. The police and television crews will be coming for you soon, I know it." She watched her friend blink in a daze, still trying to wake up. "So why were you sleeping? It's not even midnight yet. And your getup - one margarita too many at the club, am I right?"

Squinting, Sam tried to sort through her memories. "I…I don't know. Maybe. The last thing I remember was…a man…"

Jessica light-heartedly nudged her elbow in Sam's side. "You can't even remember? Ooo, I was right. You should take me with you next time."

"No, that's not it…" Sam rested her forehead in her palm, thinking. Then she lit up. "I was on a date."

"A date? With whom?"

"With that guy, Jess – the guy you dared me to share my number with on the road. Dave."

She gawked incredulously. "That super handsome guy? He actually called you up?"

"Yes, yes he did," Sam stated with a smidge of pride.

"You don't think he's the one who stole your car, do you?"

"No! Not at all!"

"Are you _sure_? Looks to me like he could've bought you one too many on purpose, dumped you here and took off with one of his buddies."

Sam let herself fall back on the bed and stared at the ceiling, trying to remember more. She couldn't remember anything she did earlier that day. Somehow, she _could_ remember the drive to the restaurant as clear as day. She recalled a joke here, a fact there, Dave's charming, contagious laugh. Dinner was delicious, but foggy. The rest seemed to be cut out from her memory completely, because she still couldn't remember how she got home. It didn't matter, though. "No, Jess! Put the stupid car chase out of your mind for a minute and listen to me. I don't think I've ever met a man so amazing – you've gotta believe me."

The whirr of a multitude of vehicles and the crackle of tires on asphalt interrupted them. Jessica peeked through the curtains, assaulted by the light show of white and red and blue. "Get up. They're here. I'll help you out."

The two women straightened themselves out and prepared for the inevitable knocking.

"Police Chief Derrick Landry," an older, uniformed man announced as Jessica opened the door. Although the salt-and-pepper hair and crow's feet signaled that he was aging, his voice was strong and steady. He gestured toward another uniformed man at his left, whom he introduced as Officer Brenner. "Is Miss Compton present?"

"Yes I am," Sam informed him as she stepped in front of her friend.

"We'd like to come in and ask you a few questions regarding a road incident that happened approximately half an hour ago," Landry asked politely.

"By all means." Sam stepped aside and invited them in; the second, younger officer followed behind the chief and shut the door.

"Are you aware of what has happened to your car, miss?" Landry asked while Brenner removed a notepad and pen from his chest pocket.

Sam looked at Jessica and back, laughing nervously. "I just saw it on the news. I had no idea."

Brenner readied his pen. "Do you have any idea who may have stolen your car? Anyone holding a grudge against you, anyone you think might be involved in shady activities, anyone who may have had recent access to your car keys…?"

She told the officers that she honestly didn't know anyone personally who would do such a thing; that she knew nothing about the unusual weapon; and that she had spent the day on a first date, if there was any value to be found there.

"This man you spent the evening with," Landry began, "do you have his contact information?"

Sam thought for a minute. His cell showed up as a private number on her caller ID, so she'd written his phone number down on a napkin and stuffed it in her purse. "Yes, I do."

"Have you been in contact with him at all since the incident?"

"No, I haven't."

"We recommend that you do, miss," suggested Brenner with an assuring grin. "I understand you probably don't want to believe he had anything to do with this, but please cooperate with us. It could help the investigation greatly – you never know."

After reaching into a pocket, the chief brought forth a little white card. "Here's my cell. You look tired, Miss Compton – we won't keep you. I'll shoo the camera crews away tonight. Get some rest and call me if you learn anything. We're going to go follow up some other leads in the meantime." He nodded his head and spun around to leave.

"Good night," Brenner said on his way out.

After the cops left, Jessica grabbed Sam by the shoulders. "Go call Dave," she ordered. "You might not think so, but I think there's something up with that guy. Call it a best-friend's intuition."

Sam grabbed her cell phone and Dave's number, still in a daze. She couldn't believe she was doing this. She was sure he was innocent. Would her questions insult him and push him away?

But what if he _wasn't _innocent?

* * *

Spitting out more blood from his battered mouth, Hiwatari slowly pushed himself off of the ground. The grass looked a little funny, even without his glasses. Taking the time to observe his surroundings, he noticed that the rest of the area looked oddly stagnant and lifeless. Regardless, the fact that it was sunset was enough to tell him that he had been sent to another world.

Then it hit him. Indeed, this world had an artistic quality to it, in a style not unlike those beautiful pieces his son always used to make. He never guessed that he himself would one day be trapped inside of one.

"Curse him," he cried in frustration and kicked a nearby tree. "Curse him!"

He fell still. No, he wasn't the only living thing here. The place was overflowing with heartwarming, cheery colors, yet his pulse quickened in response to a deadly chill. He crouched behind the tree he had just struck to hide and gather his thoughts.

_That aura…could it be?_

He dared to peek around the tree and scan closely for movement. There were more painted trees of vibrant greens, buttered with rich light. There was the quaint, painted house, cozy and inviting. There was the painted lawn, thick, lush wisps, stained with crimson.

Blades of grass dripped with blood. Shackles and chains lay strewn about the area, some broken, some bent, some melted in half, some still locked around pieces of flesh. Demonic horns, claws and fangs stuck up from the ground in a gruesome display of death. With each minute that passed, the heaviness in the air suffocated Hiwatari even more.

The most unsettling part was that he couldn't see the one responsible for it.

He slowly retreated into the safety of the forest, one tree at a time, careful to stay quiet. _So here I am, trapped with him in this arena with no weapons to speak of. _Panic swept over him. _He's gone mad. Satoshi was right. He's going to kill me._

Just then, his cell phone rang. That was it. Krad would hear it; he was a dead man. But since he was a dead man, he might as well answer it.

"Hello?"

"Dave?"

He leaned his head back against the tree, flooded with an unusual emotion. She remembered him. He'd get to hear her voice one more time before he died. The thought came to him that spending time with her was the only worthwhile thing he'd ever done with his short life. The rest – the plotting, thinking, obsessing, secret worrying – cultivated only in the quick end he was about to experience here.

"Dave, are you there?"

"Yes, Sam, it's me."

"Hey." There was a slight pause. "Do you perhaps know what I'm calling about?"

Dave mulled over the possibilities. It could be anything. "Enlighten me."

"My car?"

"Ah, yes, your car."

On the other end of the phone, Sam's jaw dropped with disbelief. It was as if he'd just admitted it. "You're not the one who stole it, are you?"

"Whoa there," Dave said with a hushed voice. His eyes began to roam about as he suddenly saw a plan unfold in front of him. It was tricky, but it was gold. If he played his cards _perfectly_, he might be able to get away with this. "You mean you don't remember?"

"Remember what?"

"The thief who broke in! He tried to steal something of yours and took off in your car. I chased after him to get it back." It was a half-truth, at least.

"I don't remember that!"

"Well, we did have drinks. I thought you looked fine, but maybe you had a little much?"

"…Oh. That must be it." There was obvious relief in her voice. "Thank you for trying to stop him."

Another pause. "Sam, I need to tell you something."

"What's that?"

"The thief's still on the loose – I believe he's either coming to or already at this address." He quietly whispered the address of the girl's house. "You can stop him. You can get your antique back and put him in jail."

"Ok, I'll tell the police!" She halted. "Where you are now?"

"I'm…in a bit of a pinch. You know, business. I don't think I'll be able to see you any time soon. But I want to let you know that I care about you, Sam, so don't worry –"

A deafening crash. The tree Hiwatari leaned against detonated into a storm of splinters, some of which buried themselves into his back and shoulders.

Agony.

All of a sudden, he could not breathe. Some invisible force constricted every inch of his body, hammering the splinters deep into his skin. Slowly, it lifted him into the air, where he found a flurry white-hot feathers poised around him, their shaft tips jagged like so many broken knives. Brilliant golden locks tumbled around him from behind, and the venom of Krad's whispers dripped into his ear:

"What a welcome surprise..._Master_."

Hiwatari's trembling hand dropped the cell phone. This could either be the end, or the start of a beautiful beginning. If he had to pick the more likely one, he'd say it was the end.

"Y-…y…you…"

"Oh? _What was that?"_

_If I could just breathe!  
_

Out of his twisted sense of mercy, Krad loosened the grip of his magic. Killing him now wouldn't be any fun. Especially if he couldn't scream.

Hiwatari desperately gasped for air in order to speak his mind as fast as he could.

"Krad!...Krad, listen to me! We have a chance at getting out!"

A pause, and then Hiwatari's feet met the ground again. The feathers lowered, but only slightly. He hunched over with his hands on his knees to catch his breath, each inhale making him keenly aware of the needles in his back.

"Why should _I_," Krad sneered, "trust _you?_"

Hardly composed, Hiwatari stood up and turned around to face the demon. Krad was in perfect condition, despite the blood. In fact, he seemed stronger than ever. "After what you tried to do, I shouldn't trust you, either. But here I am, offering you a way of escape."

"Only because you do not wish to die by my hand."

"Not just your hand. I don't want to die in general. I'd venture to say that you don't want to die, either. Kill me now, and you'll never get out. Can we not civilly combine our powers to work this out for our mutual benefit?"

Krad withdrew all of the feathers. "What is your proposed way of escape?"

"You heard the phone call." He gave Krad a hard, searching stare. "Dark has come."

The crimson-soaked demon's countenance turned to stone, and the ground shook subtly.

"He stole the Reflections of Regret from me. You have the other half of it – the ring."

Krad pulled it out of his robes and studied it with new knowledge. The sparkling object he carried was linked to Dark. Perfect.

"A woman I met in the real world is going to inform the police that he stole something of hers," Hiwatari explained. "Attack the ring with your magic to ground him. When the police find him, he won't be able to fight back. They'll take the Reflections of Regret and give it back to the woman. Her subconscious will to see me will pull me out if I wear the ring."

"Just you?"

"If we stay the way we are, yes. But if we bind ourselves together, we will both be free."

Having considered this plan, Krad erupted into sinister laughter. "Well done, Master. And what shall we do when we have escaped? Surely," he sauntered to Hiwatari's side, "we shall be enemies in the same body. What then?"

"No," Hiwatari stated boldly. "It's not impossible for us to coexist. You and I, we think alike. With your power and my reputation, nothing can stop us. We work together. We aim straight for Lena. We live."

* * *

Once Hatsuharu and Kyo had simmered down, the group stood around the room, quietly breathing, illuminated only by the lone street light beyond. It had finally happened. Dave was locked away, and they were now safe – but an even bigger problem loomed over their heads. Alyssa was still missing.

All at once, everyone had something to say. It was awkward deciding who would speak first, but consent was eventually given to Kyo.

"Guys…you know that card I tore up at the door?"

They nodded.

"It was a warning letter from Dark, saying he was going to steal her tonight."

Haru wasn't surprised. "I was going to say that Alyssa sounded like she knew he'd arrive as soon as Dave was taken care of."

"And that animal we saw fly away from the bushes," Satoshi added, "was a creature named With, who is Dark's familiar."

"Then we're done for," Kyo sighed, frustrated, expecting his legs to disappear at any moment.

Tohru inched closer to him. "No we're not."

The others inquired as to what she meant.

"Look at us. We're not dead. And remember," she took both of his hands, "relationships take a while to form. Like with us! Those two may like each other, but they won't realize that they're soul-mates or anything right away, silly." Her smile brightened the gloom. "If Dark's the right one for her, he won't use magic on her to rush things like Krad did. We have time, Kyo. True love is a patient process."

"She's right," Ayame realized with cheer. "Love is a beautiful blossom that only opens over time. It's one of Shigure's novels – a complex tale that takes forever to come to fruition!"

"It is _not_ one of his novels!" Kyo hissed. "It's not as sick!"

There came a light chorus of laughter.

"Even so," Satoshi interposed, "we can't just sit around. We need to find her."

The _Furuba _characters were at a loss of ideas. "How does one find a phantom thief?"

Satoshi entered a deeply focused state of thought for a few moments. Then, he gave swift orders like the police commander he was so accustomed to being. "Kyo, stay posted on the roof. Haru, keep watch inside the house – we don't want you getting lost. Tohru and Ayame, you're coming with me. We'll take the Lexus for a drive to town, watching the skies along the way. Be vigilant. He wouldn't have taken her too far."

They all prepared to do as he instructed. Satoshi strode out of the house with Tohru and Ayame toward Hiwatari's now-dented vehicle, and they all lowered inside. As he had thought, his father was in too much of a hurry to remove the keys. Before setting the car in motion, he explained some more things to the others.

"Tohru, I'm bringing you with me because you resemble a girl from my own world, one whom Dark was deeply connected with. In other words, you're bait. And Ayame, I need your instincts. Open your eyes, your ears, your predatory instincts. Now, I'm familiar with Dark's personality. He'd take a lady only to the most spectacular place possible, and I think I know where that may be. We'll start there and work our way out."

Tohru and Ayame, sitting together in the back seat, nodded with determination. "We'll do our best."

The car purred as Satoshi steered it off into the night. They watched as the sporadic street lights became more frequent and eventually transformed into the sodium daylight of businesses and shopping centers. Ayame pressed his head against the window in order to get a better view of the sky, while Tohru watched out the other side.

Startling them, two pairs of red and blue lights flashed from all of the car's mirrors.

"Oh no!" Tohru gasped with her hands covering her mouth. Satoshi was quiet as he considered what he should do. He hadn't been speeding. What was this all about?

He pulled over and grew tense as two officers walked up to his window. People from the real world were about to see his face. This could cause some problems.

One of the officers tapped on his window, so he took a deep breath and rolled it down. "Yes, officer?"

The officer stopped short. "You, uh…" He stared just a little bit longer. "You look a little young to be driving, don't you, kid? Got your license on you?"

Satoshi responded in a calm manner. "No I do not, but rest assured that I am of age. I legally have twenty-four hours to supply my license."

"What is your name?"

Satoshi answered carefully. "Seth Irata. Dave Irata's son."

The officer nodded – this information matched up with the owner of the plate. _I didn't know anything about him having a son, but I see the resemblance, if you ignore the blue hair. Rebel punk. _"We've pulled you over because of your license plate. Traffic camera records indicate that this is the missing vehicle involved in a car chase incident that took place about an hour ago. You're not under arrest, but I'm afraid you'll all have to come with me to the police station for questioning."

"I'll take them," the other officer, a shapely young woman, suggested. "Take a break, Ben. It's late. You've been on patrol all day."

He considered this with a sigh. "Alright, the kids are yours. I'll at least report the car."

Thinking a mile a minute, Satoshi, Tohru and Ayame exited the Lexus and followed the woman to her police vehicle. Once inside, they sat in uneasy silence. Eventually, the woman grinned with amusement.

"Lighten up!"

From the passenger seat, Satoshi dared to meet her shimmering, lavender eyes. A few twirls of silver hair fell from beneath her hat, contrasting with her chocolate skin. He was speechless. At last, he laughed at himself for not noticing sooner, and Ayame joined in shortly thereafter.

Tohru, who couldn't see her face, was therefore completely confused.

"Our true maker," Ayame smiled, "Lena."

All three of them swelled up with joy.

"It's late – my time to shine," Lena sang out her melodious voice. "Hiwatari made a public mess, and you're going to fix it. Congratulations. You're on the force again, dear."

Satoshi looked down to find himself spontaneously dressed in a decorated police uniform.

They pulled up to the police station, and she told Satoshi to get out. "Don't worry, I've made sure that the officers here know you. I'm going to take these two home. You'll know what to do as soon as you walk in."

Before he opened the door to the station, he looked back. The car had disappeared. Suddenly alone, he mustered up the faith to burst through the door.

"Commander!"

A young officer with a full head of dark hair came running up to him. "Commander, we just got a call from Samantha Compton, the one who owned the damaged car from the chase," he exhaled. "She thinks she knows who stole her car, as well as one of her valuable antiques, and gave us an address."

_I can't believe Lena just thrust me out into the open, but it worked._

The officer listed off the address, allowing Satoshi put all the pieces together regarding the chase. "Officer…what was it...?"

"Brenner, sir," he replied with a sparkling white smile.

"Officer Brenner, he's not at that location. I just came from there."

The man lit up. "Wow, Commander, you're fast. How'd you know the address?"

"I…followed up some other leads. I'm positive that the thief is here in the city somewhere, probably up high on the rooftops."

Landry strode out of his office with an eyebrow raised. "Commander…you seem to know an awful lot about this thief."

"That's because I've run into him in the past, sir. Let's rein in patrol toward the city, just for tonight. I have no doubt he'll be out in the open, probably dressed in black, and a currently missing teenaged girl will be with him. No time to explain – we have to move!"

Both men nodded at Satoshi, setting aside their doubts with a huge amount of trust. "Alrighty, boys!" Landry called out to the handful of officers in the building. "Get ready to go! We're gonna catch ourselves a thief!"

_Thank you, Lena. I'm curious to see how this pans out._

* * *

I was flying.

The trees fell away beneath my feet, leaving me in the company of faded stars. Stars, and the vigorous pulsing of wings that were black as the air we flew through. I couldn't see very well, but I didn't need to.

I knew it was him.

Each second that passed felt like ages. It was so unexpected that my head started swirling. My mind had been so focused on hunting down Hiwatari, back when I was bound by gravity. When I had hid in the trees, I was part of the shadows, melting into nothing, concerned only with preserving our identities. Fearing for my life. That was when two arms soundlessly stole me into the air, where I didn't have to worry.

"You could've warned me," I finally managed to say.

Keeping his gaze on the sky ahead of him, he responded in his characteristically suave manner. "I told you, didn't I?" His arms held me closer. "That I'd find you in a night like this one."

"But that was a dream."

"You sure?"

His implication got me thinking. "If it wasn't, then what about all the other dreams?"

We were headed toward the city, and the nearing lights began to play off of his features. He tilted his head and answered with a wink: "You'll find out eventually."

I ignored the thought for the time being and simply chose to enjoy his presence. "Where are we going?"

"Up there," he said, pointing out the tallest structure in the town, being the bell-tower of a church. A moment or two later, we approached the structure. Dark's wings rushed forward with immense force to slow us down and usher us into a smooth landing.

When he set me down, I held my breath and faced him – it was the moment I'd been waiting for. The sight that greeted me was surreal. The monstrous black wings that stretched for miles to his sides, glimmering and sleek with power, were unlike anything I'd ever beheld. Impossibly, the gravity-defying purple spikes that constituted his hair swayed in the breeze, yet kept their form. His black attire bared the strong arms that had carried me here, also hinting at a lean build more ideal than humans could ever hope for. And those deep violet eyes, glittering with kindness from nearly a foot above me, drew me in to the point of no return.

Dark placed his hands on my upper arms and backed up a step, studying my features in the same way. "So you're Alyssa…" he smirked, chuckled. "Lena told me about everything that's happened so far. All this trouble, just for me?"

I shrugged. "Well…yeah. And you finally made it."

He let go and stepped to the edge of the platform. "I have to thank you," he said sincerely. "Because of you, I get to live, unfettered by the confines of the other world. I get to fly the skies on real wings, wherever I choose." Offering me his hand, he winked again. "And I get the girl. What could be better?"

At this, I hesitated. _But Lena's words…_

"Something wrong?"

"The dreams, Dark. Lena proposed a question to me in one of them – she asked me if I'd be willing to sacrifice the others in order to keep you here."

"…And would you?"

I searched his gaze, hoping I'd find forgiveness there. "I don't think I could. I care about them, Dark. But I care about you, too. Why can't you all live? Why does it have to be one or the other?"

He bit his lip and looked out over the city for a moment. Then he opened up his arms. "Come here."

"What?"

His fingers beckoned me, and I obeyed. Tugging me close, he fanned his wings forward and out to the sides as if to present the view, and then bent his head down toward my ear. "It's alright. Here and now, we're all alive. Whatever has to happen, remember this night."

His arms wrapped around my waist, and we stayed that way, simply breathing. He was right. I looked out over the yellowish haze of the town below, ignoring the toy cars and microscopic people, letting every sensation burn into my memory. If nothing else, I had met the legendary phantom thief face-to-face.

A familiar voice floated over Dark's wings from behind. "I'll let you in on a little secret."

Dark quickly released me and folded his wings to reveal the glowing beauty of Lena.

"Girl," she shook her head. "It doesn't have to be that way."

I blinked.

"Remember what I said about making sure you really wanted what you wished for?" she asked. "Well, you finally made up your mind. Handsome as he is" – at this, Dark faked a modest shrug as though he didn't know what she was talking about – "you found out that you couldn't rely on Dark for absolutely everything. This is why I created Hiwatari. He brought you out of your shell by forcing you to unite with each of the others. You've recognized a thing or two about yourself since your first wish. As a result…your wish has changed to a more accurate one."

"…It's changed? To what?"

"'_I wish that I could feel alive.'"_

She was dead on.

"In accordance with this, they _all_ can live. With a few careful precautions, of course."

Dark flashed a triumphant smile, and I briefly gaped at him until the realization sunk in. Then, I ran over to hug Lena as hard as I could. "Thank you!"

"Just doing my job!" she exclaimed, and suddenly began disintegrating into the necklace I wore.

Once again, Dark and I were alone on the bell tower.

"Looks like you're staying," I beamed, gazing up at him.

"And it's all thanks to you," he spoke softly, and gently brought his hand to the side of my neck, letting his long fingers slide to my chin. Before I knew it, he was leaning closer, and then his lips found mine.

"Feel alive, yet?" came a playful whisper, and then he kissed me again, longer this time.

When again I opened my eyes, I was taken aback by a shock of red hair.

"Uhh…" stuttered Daisuke, blushing a similar shade of red. "This isn't weird."

I turned a bit red myself and let out a shaky laugh. "Nice to meet you, Daisuke."

"Kyuuuuu!"

A tiny white ball of fur on his shoulder flung itself into my hands. Luminous berry-red eyes sparkled at me with the excitement of a puppy, but from a fluffy, rabbit-like body. The creature, With, quickly hopped back onto Daisuke's head and wound around him until he descended into a baggy pants pocket. He tried to shove something out of it. "Kyuu, kyuuu!"

Daisuke took the object, a folded piece of paper. "What's this?"

As he unfolded it, I immediately recognized it as my missing drawing of Dark. Before I could ask for it, the paper itself transformed into Dark, bringing him back to the top of the bell tower. The two were officially separated. Daisuke sighed with relief.

_My drawing…was Dark himself?_

Dark, however, was extremely annoyed. He reached out to viciously shake Daisuke back and forth. "Stealing my kiss, dangit! Who do you think you are, punk?"

"Hold it, guys," I said, directing their attention to the scene below the tower. Police cars pulled up around the church, one by one, lights blaring.

Dark wasted no time in scooping me up. "See ya, Daisuke! You got this!"

"WHAT? Dark, that's not fair! Come back here!"

Daisuke sighed and paced around the top of the tower, desperately searching for a way of escape. With, still in his pocket, decided to shove another object out of it to make room for himself.

"What's _this, _now?" he said to himself, withdrawing a bejeweled pocket-watch.

Before he could open it, a paralyzing blade of dark magic cut through him, rendering him stiff as a statue and tipping him over the edge of the tower. Dark, who had been watching him out of the corner of his eye to see how he would fare, immediately stopped in midair when he saw him go over. _That was Krad's magic!_

He flew back in a panic, planning to set me atop the tower again so that he could swoop down and rescue Daisuke. There was no need, however. He was comforted to find that a familiar blue-haired police commander, miraculously teamed up with a real-life police force, caught him at the bottom.

But then, a blinding light emitted from Daisuke's hand. A single figure manifested itself nearby, spattered with blood.


End file.
